


London

by Pierrre



Series: Cities of love (cheesy working title) [2]
Category: Cats (1998), Cats - Andrew Lloyd Webber, Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats - T. S. Eliot
Genre: 1950s, But due to the time period, Cats Band Au, Cats human au, F/M, Homophobia, Homosexual Struggles, Homosexuals in 1950s, Human AU, I created my own tag-, M/M, Mr. Mistoffelees is Quaxo (Cats), Mungojerrie & Rumpleteazer are siblings, Munkustrap & Rum Tum Tugger & Macavity are Siblings, Munkustrap & Rum Tum Tugger are Siblings, My characters aren't homophobic, Romance in 1950s, SPARKLES ✨✨✨✨✨, band au, tuggoffelees - Freeform, ✨✨✨✨✨✨
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-14 15:41:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 59,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28673154
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pierrre/pseuds/Pierrre
Summary: This is the sequel/book 2/part 2 of Beijing a fanfiction i wrote, if you haven't read Beijing i reccomend reading it before proceeding to read this.After Quaxo decided to go and follow Tugger and live his own adventure and love story he is finally happy. The couple still struggles with the homosexual laws during 1950s but they trust each other and believe in their love. In the meantime Quaxo gets to see the world and meet Tugger's friends, and adjust to his new life, he gets to know about many of Tugger's friends as he and Tugger explore the beautiful capital of China.They go on dates while trying to keep everything discreet and hold back their true feelings fearing of the world's reaction. The band goes on concerts, but things aren't always that easy so Quaxo has to save the day.Read this as I try to develop the characters of the previous story, get to know about everyone's past and watch me struggle not to be OOC~✨Slower updates than Beijing but i will update at least once a month✨
Relationships: Alonzo/Cassandra (Cats), Bombalurina & Demeter (Cats), Bombalurina & Rum Tum Tugger (Cats), Demeter & Jemima (Cats, Demeter/Munkustrap (Cats), Macavity & Munkustrap & Rum Tum Tugger, Mr. Mistoffelees & Mungojerrie (Cats), Mr. Mistoffelees & Rum Tum Tugger (Cats), Mr. Mistoffelees & Rumpleteazer (Cats), Mr. Mistoffelees/Rum Tum Tugger (Cats), Mungojerrie & Rumpleteazer (Cats), Munkustrap & Jemima (Cats), Munkustrap & Rum Tum Tugger, Old Deuteronomy & Munkustrap & Rum Tum Tugger (Cats), Plato/Victoria (Cats), Quaxo & Rum Tum Tugger (Cats), Quaxo/Rum Tum Tugger
Series: Cities of love (cheesy working title) [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2101458
Comments: 75
Kudos: 34





	1. On my way

**Author's Note:**

> EDIT:  
> HII just a quick announcement for the older readers, I've edited some part of the story that kept bugging me, it's nothing major of course. Originally (Something that older readers might remember) the canon names of the characters were used as stage names inspired by a book with cat poems (Old Possum's book of practical Cats) BUT something kept bugging me. I make Tugger appear as a huge fan of the book BUT if he was indeed a huge fan he would have noticed that 'Quaxo' is a name mentioned in the book, or that Bustopher (who is Quaxo's uncle in this book) is also mentioned. Yeah that annoys me so I'm cutting out this part! Also any part in which Tugger compares Quaxo to Mr Mistoffelees is out as well.  
> this edit was made in the 10th of January 2021

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //Hello hello, so this series/book is back~ yay after 10 days! I hope you missed me and my story, i hope you will like this fanfic just as much, if not even more!  
> Thanks to everyone who left Kudos and comments for the previous book and to everyone that has just been reading this story, you reading my story means just as much!
> 
> Anyway yay~

Navigating themselves out of the station was fairly easy after they were on the right way, Mungojerrie or Rumpleteazer -no one really remembered which one- read a sign wrong and pointed in a different direction misleading the group for some minutes. “Hey so Straps what's the plan-!?”yelled Tugger as they exited the station. “What's the point of having nicknames if you are going to shorten them?Why is my name Munkustrap and not just Munk or Straps-?”mumbled Munkustrap heaving a sigh, he didn't mind the name as much as he claimed to, he just found it too 'flashy' for him especially since he was mostly the manager of the band and not so much of a member that went on stage. “Alright so-”mumbled Munkustrap as he checked his clock making sure he would be accurate and informative since he didn't expect any of his friends to know their next move, the only one that is excused is Quaxo of course. “So we have about 5 hours until our next train leaves, it's not a long of time but it’s enough for a stroll around the station, once we get there-”announced Munkustrap as he made some calculations in his mind concerning their remaining money and the tickets, they had one more person and he didn't plan on not paying for Quaxo’s travel expenses, he was one of them now.  
The station they had just left from was in an isolated village, it was a pretty small station and a quick stop of the trans siberean railway so the 5 friends were now walking in a country road next to fields of straws and fruits or small forest-like parts, it was really quiet especially since it was morning now and the heat of the winter sun made this walk rather pleasant. There was not a single soul there, only the occasional cars passing by and the small houses on the mountains they could barely spot from a large distance.  
(this is me describing my home, it's so isolated where I live but I love it-)

“Are you feeling homesick or nervous or anything-?”asked nervouslyTugger looking at Quaxo, he knew that all this was sudden and he wanted to make sure Quaxo was 100% on board with this now that the shorter male was finally awake, or at least in a better state than he was before. “I've never been-”said Quaxo as a yawn cut his sentence short “happier!''continued Quaxo after the yawn, he never talked or attempted to do so while yawning, it was bad manners. Tugger wrapped his arm around Quaxo's shoulder forcing the shorter male to slightly lean on him which earned him a questioning look from Quaxo “W-we're in public-”mumbled the black-haired male “We're in the middle of nowhere, but I couldn't tell if you were sleepwalking or not, trust me this is for your protection and well-being it has nothing to do with … us” said Tugger smirking widely as he said the word 'us'. “Oh thank you, I hadn't realized your totally friendly intentions-”teased Quaxo chuckling sleepily and Tugger shrugged “I understand you're less clever in your sleep~ You're still an angel nonetheless~”purred Tugger and the other just ignored the second part of the sentence “I'm still more clever than you-”he muttered teasingly earning a laugh from the taller male “You sure are~”he agreed wishing that he wasn't carrying his guitar on the other hand so he could ruffle Quaxo's hair or something.

Jerrie smirked and took his sister's hand as he pointed at Quaxo and Tugger, on the train they had to 'behave' to ensure their friend's happiness and they didn't really disturb the couple, but now Quaxo was basically trapped with them which gave these two all the time in the world to tease them. “Check this out-” said Teazer as he took some berries of a bush and threw them at the couple. Jerrie smirked before copying her, it was their perfect chance as Munkustrap was ahead and was struggling to read a map that would ensure their arrival at the nearest bus station.

The berries were caught in Tugger's long hair and the twins smirked even wider and they kept tossing berries at the couple who seemed to either not to notice it or ignore it. Though when a berry landed on Quaxo's shirt the short male turned his head glaring at the twins, his face disformed cause he held back a yawn. If that stupid fruit left a stain on his shirt he would never forgive them, he only had brought 3-4 white shirts with him and he wore these on a daily basis. The glare made the twins laugh even more and it attracted Munkustrap's attention who only groaned “I don't know how far the bus station is don't waste any time fooling around!”scolded Munkustrap, not turning around, who by now had lost all hope in interfering with the twins' antics.  
“Jerrie, Teazer, I know the two of you have the hots for me and my little angel-”said Tugger as he turned his body around with Quaxo still next to him and the two were now walking backwards “I'm not little-”hissed Quaxo and Tugger nodded at that “Sorry-” he apologized before turning his attention back to his two friends “Anyway yes you have a crush on us, but we would appreciate some privacy~”exclaimed Tugger playfully.  
“Oh yher right we so 'ave a crush on you!”said Teazer faking a dramatic sigh as her 'secret' had been 'revealed'. “Aye Tugs, we can't 'elp it!”said Jerrie nodding sadly “Were we so obvious?!''asked Teazer looking at Tugger now with a fake shocked expression on her face “Only God knows 'ow 'ard we tried to 'ide our true feelings for ya!”said the male twin ironically, placing a hand on his forehead to emphasize the ‘pain’ he felt. Tugger chuckled “I don't appreciate your tone Mungojerrie!”he teased and the red-haired male shrugged “I don't appreciate ya flirtin' in front of me while being aware o’ my true feelings for ya!!''whined Jerrie jokingly as his sister nodded. “I'm sorry I'm sorry but my heart belongs to little Quaxo~”said Tugger, smiling sincerely as he held Quaxo closer and tighter now who was too sleepy to react to Tugger calling him ‘little’ again.

Quaxo blushed a little and looked up at Tugger for a quick second before quickly averting his gaze, they both knew how they felt of course but it was the first time Tugger had actually said it out loud, even with only 4 people around, Tugger was acknowledging it and it meant a lot to Quaxo, he hadn't realized how much he needed to hear this, to make sure of Tugger's feelings before saying anything more clear himself, Then he noticed how Tugger was taking glances at him, probably expecting something but Quaxo had no idea what to say, he wasn't this uncertain usually, he opened his mouth but no words came out, how could he begin to describe what he felt, instead he just leaned more against Tugger nuzzling his side gently “Thanks Quaxo-”breathed out Tugger smiling as he embraced this feeling.

Only fools rush in, Tugger knew that and he was no fool, he hadn't had any serious relationship with anyone before other than his childhood friend Bombalurina but it was more like testing it out rather than being in love with her. She was more like Tugger's best friend than a potential girlfriend. But Quaxo was just so different, new to Tugger and a perfect type of new how could he not be attracted to it? It wasn't something Tugger would want to do before meeting Quaxo, have such strong romantic feelings for someone, maybe even loving someone, but all of his previous thoughts felt weak and meaningless when Quaxo was around. Typically fools rushed in, but Tugger knew he was no fool, how could he not rush in when it involved Quaxo?In fact rushing in made him rather smart.

“Jerrie!Let's third-wheel!”said Teazer who rushed up a little and was now walking next to Quaxo. “Wouldn't it be fourth-wheeling though since we're two?”Asked Jerrie who went and started walking next to Tugger, His sister shrugged as a reply “So we should be at the bus station in 45 minutes, then it'll leave us right out of the railway station in 30 from the time we board, 45 minutes top if there is traffic.”announced Munkustrap as he placed the map back in his pocket. Tugger groaned, 45 minutes of walking, “Quaxo can't you teleport us-?”asked Tugger gently shaking Quaxo to wake him up even more as he was half-sleeping in Tugger's hug. “W-What-?”Asked Quaxo, raising an eyebrow trying to process what had Tugger just said.  
Teazer giggled and her brother shushed her as Munkustrap was just staring at Tugger while he walked, he couldn't believe that Tugger actually believed in magic. “You know what you did back on the train, you made smoke appear and teleported inside the kupe!”said Tugger with a excitement and Quaxo chuckled and yawned “I'm too tired to do such magic again-”he replied playfully earning a pout from Tugger which in Quaxo's eyes only made the taller male look even more adorable than he already was.

“So what are the other members of your band like?”Asked Quaxo nervously feeling like the silence was getting too boring and using conversation as an excuse to stay awake. “Well, there's Demeter~”purred Tugger, winking at his brother who was now walking next to them and he eye rolled. “Oh that is Munkustrap's girlfriend?”asked Quaxo and everyone except Munkustrap smirked and nodded “Yep~ her and her sister were our neighbors we basically grew up together!”explained Tugger smiling and Quaxo nodded “Childhood friends are the best type of friends-”mumbled Quaxo smiling softly as he remembered Plato, his childhood friend, his first and best friend, the only one worthy of being with Quaxo's sister.  
“Not always-”mumbled Munkustrap as he heaved a sigh and Tugger sighed as well nervously “Maxwell was an exception, look at us and Bombalurina and Demeter, we're still together”said Tugger smiling trying to ease up Munkustrap. “Did I say something?W-who's Maxwell?”asked Quaxo nervously. “It's fine Tugger doesn't mind anymore!”said Teazer quietly “Oh and Maxwell is their brother-”she continued in her quiet tone. Quaxo simply nodded “Hey Teazer no need to whisper, look Maxwell was our older brother”said Tugger smiling a little “Tugger no, we don't need to talk about it it's fine!”said Quaxo quickly and Tugger shrugged “Look Munkustrap and Demeter need to get over it anyway, let's start with Munkustrap”said Tugger eye rolling as he took a glance at his brother.

“It's not that easy Tugger, you weren't even 10 years old when that happened-”said Munkustrap groaning as he moved on ahead and opened his map again trying to calm himself down by pretending to read the map. “I better go check on that-”said Teazer awkwardly after a few minutes and she went after Munkustrap and the two started chatting after a while. “Shouldn't you go as well?”Asked Quaxo looking up at Tugger “It's fine we get into all sorts of quick arguments with Munk-”he said with a chuckle and Quaxo sighed. “So wanna know what happened-?”Asked Tugger looking at Quaxo “Yeah ya should tell 'im, since he's like with us now-” said Jerrie nodding “And 'e better know what to say around Demeter and watch 'is mouth!”added Jerrie quickly and Tugger laughed “Yeah we don't want her sensitive ass upsetting Quaxo-”he joked quietly not wanting his brother to hear him making fun of Demeter. Jerrie held back a laugh and nodded quickly.  
They in fact liked Demeter a lot, she helped out Munkustrap taking off some of the stress and making him happy and for Tugger anyone that made his brother less stressed and happy had his approval, but she got a little too sensitive and let her emotions get the best of her oftenly. Especially when it came to Maxwell, she wasn't moving on which also prevented Munkustrap from moving on, both of them let that incident affect them too much. They were the ones that had it rough when it happened of course, they were both at a sensitive age and they were old enough to perfectly remember it, unlike Tugger who of course had a rough time as well but it was different. He remembers almost all of his childhood as something sad, his parents fighting, his mother leaving his brother living and after some years the war started and he basically grew up during a toxic house environment and WWII. But he had Munkustrap and his dad, who always made sure he was happy and kind of shielded -or at least tried to- form whatever was happening during Tugger’s childhood. It’s not like he is happy about everything that he’s been through, but he is perfectly fine with his life so he saw no point in sticking to the past.

“Well long story short, Dem had a crush on Maxwell and well when he ran away he was around 16 so he didn't have any money so he asked little naive Dem to steal some from her mother claiming that he'd take her on a trip, but Max just took the money and left her dealing with the guilt and betrayal she felt-”said Tugger heaving a long sigh and Jerrie just listened. Quaxo again moved closer to Tugger trying to show affection or something, he didn't know what he was doing. “That must have been hard for all of you, I'm sorry to hear that-''mumbled Quaxo and Tugger chuckled “It's fine Angel I don't care about it, as a kid I cried for about a week but my brother and dad helped me out and I like my life now, I have a band, I recently met the most magical person in the world~”purred Tugger who was now somewhat feeling better about the mention of his older brother. “I understand Munk's reaction, he had to take care of me, pick up the pieces from both me and Demeter while making sure Dad didn't freak out or feel too guilty. Despite Dad's efforts Munkustrap dealt with it all alone, it was also shortly after our mom's disappearance so Dad was pretty depressed back then but he put on a facade for me and Straps, but Munkustrap was too worried about everyone else that he forgot to worry about himself I guess-”breathed out Tugger, he had spent so many hours thinking about this that now his opinion memories and thoughts on the matter where just a mixed mess of emotions and old memories.

“What I really dislike about Demeter is how she hasn't moved on so she's just a reminder of Munk's worst memory- He had no friends made sure our and Demeter's house didn't fall apart while not neglecting his studies and her being so stuck up on that memory is just, bad!Straps was basically forcing himself to be the man of our shattered messed up house protecting me and Dad while doing the same with Dem’s and Bomba’s house since their mother was away a lot”continued Tugger but heaved a sigh “Conclusion, don't say anythin' regarding, toxic relationships, childhood friends, betrayal n' shit like that when ya meet Dem!”said Jerrie smirking a little trying to cheer everyone up and ease up the situation. Quaxo made a mental note about that and nodded “Thank you!”he said as he wrapped his arm around Tugger's waist gently hugging him a little “Awww ya two lovebirds!”sqealed Teazer as she looked back at them “I'm such a third-wheel!”said Mungojerrie as he leaned on Tugger's side smirking.

Tugger and Munkustrap just looked at each other and Munkustrap nodded smiling softly and Tugger grinned, both of them now knew that everything was fine and had put the previous argument behind them. That’s usually what they did, no words were needed especially in issues they had already spent too much time analyzing.

Soon they were all talking together sharing experiences though Quaxo was mostly listening that talking, he learned about the first time Tugger had the flu as a kid but he thought he was dying so he just went and sat at the nearby graveyard crying until his Dad found him, he was so happy to find out that he can be cured. Or about the time Jerrie and Teazer joined the band.  
“So I was playin' the saxophone with a 'at on the ground placed upside down so that people could like, toss money inside!”said Jerrie with dramatic hand movements and excitement presenting it like it was the most amazing thing in the world “'n' whan Jerrie 'ad the attention o' the crowd I'd steal whatever I could from their pockets!”added Teazer quickly an excited and playful grin on her face “'n' Tugger came quickly and asked me to join their band!”continued Jerrie the previous excitement still in his voice as he took a serious expression “BUT 'E SAID''yelled Teazer smirking as she wrapped her hand around her brother's shoulder “Only 'f ma sister can join too!... I said...''said Jerrie mimicking a serious tone and expression like the one he probably had on that day. Tugger laughed at the memory “'n' that's 'ow we joined 'em!”concluded Teazer as she ruffled her brother's hair who grinned at her.

They arrived at the bus station and to Munkustap's relief they didn't pay for any ticket as there was no inspector or anyone to get a ticket from, so they quietly boarded at the back of the bus, there was only one empty seat which they offered to Quaxo but quickly after he refuse Jerrie sat on it with Teazer on his lap, That earned some glares, stares and muttering from the other passengers but Teazer stuck her tongue out at whoever looked at them and Jerrie yelled a “Oh will ya leave us alone!” as both of them were desperate to remember some curse word in Russian but Munkustap's glare made the two abandon their plan.  
Quaxo was rather enjoying this new life of his, it was much more fun and more alive, it was like a whole new world was appearing in front him, he felt happy despite the fact that he was resisting the urge to just lean against Tugger and take a quick nap. Tugger was in the same position he was sitting next to Quaxo a few inches apart leaning against the bus door, but he couldn't touch him, it felt like torture, he didn't have the need to touch Quaxo all the time no of course not, but knowing that he wasn't allowed to do it increased Tugger's need to do it. He could also tell that Quaxo wanted to fall asleep and not being able to help him was awful, Tugger couldn’t help but feel guilt and anxiousness.

Noticing how his brother was on edge Munkustrap sighed and looked at him “It's just 30 minutes Tugger don't be so dramatic, at the train you might have some more privacy and when we reach Beijing you two might have your own room-”said Munkustap quietly despite the fact that he knew that no one spoke English in here. Quaxo yawned again but sat up straight, he knew how to stand properly and perfectly even when he was tired, it was something he learned how to do not only in order not to make his family look bad but also to appear mature and like an adult in all of these social gatherings he used to attend. Tugger gave him a small smile and Quaxo returned it, to the rest of the world this wouldn't mean much but Tugger's smile meant a thousand words to the shorter male and Quaxo's smile was more than enough to make Tugger relax and feel less guilty about not helping him, a simple smile could be a symbol for so many things.

“We're here!”announced Teazer as she shot up from her brother's lap, took his hand and dragged him outside.  
Soon they were facing another fairly small station but maybe it seemed big compared to the previous smaller station, they entered and Teazer quickly led them to buy the tickets. Munkustrap opened his wallet and handed Teazer the money who was in charge of buying the tickets. “Wait let me at least pay for mine!”said Quaxo anxiously opening his wallet but Munkustrap shook his head “You are with us now, I won’t treat you any differently!”he said smiling softly and hesitantly Quaxo nodded and let the other pay for his ticket. When they had paid Teazer turned to her friends grinning nervously “So there’s a problem, actually not a problem i bet Tugger will enjoy it but still, there aren’t any berths left n’ we’re spendin’ the night on the train so we were going to use our sleeping bags but there are 4 sleeping bags n’ 5 people!”said Teazer and Tugger smiled “I am in fact enjoying it since i have an excuse to sleep with my little angel~”he purred and Quaxo eye rolled now being fully awake, it took him many hours BUT Quaxo was finally close to functioning. 

“Teazer Jerrie you will share a bag and one of you will lend your sleeping bag to Quaxo-”said Munkustrap eye rolling “I am not going to let you two end up in prison just because Tugger can’t think properly-”muttered Munkustrap and sighed, he had to take care of Tugger and his homosexual urges now, great, but he was glad that Tugger was with Quaxo and not some bimbo or a fangirl-like teen, Quaxo was an impressively unusual choice for Tugger. “I will get my own sleeping bag once we reach Beijing I’m sorry for this!”said Quaxo nervously looking at the twins who shrugged “It’s a’right!”said Jerrie smiling and his sister nodded “Yeah!Jerrie and I ‘ave shared a bed before!”she added trying to make Quaxo feel better but he just simply nodded so she couldn’t tell if he was in fact feeling better.  
“We have some time, will you let me treat you to some nice lunch, I can’t have you paying for everything I do, especially since i don’t need it-”offered Quaxo nervously as Tugger smiled at him, but Quaxo was taking glances at Munkustrap he was the one that didn’t want to use Quaxo’s money at all. “No thank you” came Munkustrap’s reply which earned a pout from Tugger Teazer and Jerrie “Come on Straps don’t be such a virgin, let dear Angel get us something nice and warm to eat FOR ONCE after what?8 or 10 days of canned fruit!”whined Tugger and eye rolled not mentioning how he had in fact eaten good food during the 2 days he spent with Quaxo on the train. “Oh yher one to talk!”said Teazer looking at Tugger “Yeah ya were in Quaxo’s kupe eatin’ fancy food with ‘im!”said Jerrie backing up his sister as he crossed his arms. “W-Well yes, and i still miss a nice warm meal. I can't imagine what it feels like for you!”said Tugger smirking and Quaxo eye rolled. 

“Look guys, if Quaxo doesn’t mind he can get you three something cheap, other than canned fruit alright?But we can’t take advantage of Quaxo!”said Munkustrap eye rolling. “I am offering, by that logic I am taking advantage of you to travel around the world, you are buying my tickets and if i had stayed silent you would have shared your food with me!”said Quaxo crossing his arms, he wasn’t going to let this slide, he was capable of telling when someone was taking advantage of him and when someone could use his money. Munkustrap was in shock he thought Quaxo was the quiet type but now he had sort of snapped, he just nodded “You are right, I’m sorry if i offended you-”said Munkustrap nervously and the short male tried to hide his proud ‘victory’ smirk and nodded “Ok well let’s eat-!”said Tugger taking Quaxo’s hand and his brother’s hand he exited the station with the twins following him, They looked around for any place they could grab a quick bite at but there weren’t too many options so they went with the nearest one. 

Quaxo was amazed with Jerrie’s and Teazer’s table manners, sure Jerrie had burped at the end and Teazer let out a loud laugh but honestly watching these two each with such elegance reminded Quaxo of the dinner parties his uncle hosted. He was now wondering if someone had shown and taught them or if they were just naturally gifted, but he didn’t ask, he just kept eating his soup. Tugger on the other hand, well Quaxo had seen him eat and he wasn’t so terrible but he would definitely stand out in one of the dinner parties, he smirked and talked while he ate he placed his glass at the edge of the table, slouched, chuckled and laughed a little too much, but these were the things Quaxo lov- liked about him. Quaxo really wanted to hug the tall blond male next to him, lean against him and show this more intimate side of himself he had discovered around Tugger, but he couldn’t they had done it before but in a tiny Russian village it was less dangerous, now they had all the time in the world ahead of them they just had to be patient. Munkustrap ate fairly politely, Jerrie and Teazer were better of course but Quaxo could picture Munkustrap in a dinner party as well.  
It didn’t matter though Tugger would always be invited to Quaxo's parties and that’s all the two cared about.

After they ate a delicious meal and Quaxo left a rather generous tip impressing the waitress they quickly left to catch their train. 

The new train was much smaller and crowded than before, or at least that’s how it seemed to Quaxo “I’ve seen fuller trains-”commented Jerrie when he noticed Quaxo’s surprise but Quaxo shrugged as a reply looking at all the people around him. Luckily they were soon able to find an empty large space where they could sleep. It had enough space for 5 people and it was at the end of the train which meant that they wouldn’t have to deal with the passengers passing by them and disturbing them.  
As soon as they settled down on their spot Quaxo curled up to the corner and fell asleep. “Hey looks adorable-”breathed out Tugger and his brother gave him a soft smile. Noticing that it wasn’t a particularly warm wagon Tugger chuckled, taking out his jacket and gently placing it on Quaxo only to wake him up and receive a sleepy and questioning look “Hey I’m just trying to cover you up!”said Tugger chuckling “Now got back to sleep-”he said quickly smiling softly at Quaxo who drifted back to sleep shortly after. 

“I-I’m happy that you two met, sorry if I'm not always the supportive big brother you need-”said Munkustrap nervously when him and Tugger were left alone since they twins had gone off to explore their new train. “What Munk, are you nuts?I couldn’t have asked for a better brother, and you’re much better than your older brother figure-”joked Tugger about the last part and Munustrap eye rolled. “I think every older brother is better than Maxwell-”mumbled Munkustrap and Tugger shrugged. “You kind of remind me of dad sometimes, but you’re far more uptight, you gotta loosen up”pointed out Tugger and Munkustrap’s eyes sparkled, he looked up to his father and what Tugger had just said meant a little too much to him. “I have to take care of 4 kids I can’t loosen you-”teased Munkustrap, by 4 kids he of course meant Tugger, Jerrie, Teazer and Bomba. “I thought you only had a daughter!”said Tugger smirking at the inside joke, “She’s not my daughter-”he mumbled with an eye roll. “Yeah yeah!Whatever you say!We haven’t seen her birth certificate yet-”.

It was around midnight, now everyone but Quaxo was asleep. He had slept so much previously that he needed to take a break from sleeping, so he sat by a window and glanced at the night sky, the stars were beautiful, he loved starry skies. This is why he loved his sparkly blazer so much, it was like a sky full of stars, he felt as though he was the sky. “Can’t sleep-?”Asked Tugger smiling sleepily as he got up from his sleeping bag and Quaxo nodded but he didn’t turn to look at Tugger “What are you doing up?”asked Quaxo quietly not averting his gaze from the window “Well i saw a toilet in my dream i thought it was my que to wake up and pee-”mumbled Tugger chuckling quietly and Quaxo turned to him and eye rolled. “Would you be kind enough to escort me to the toilet~?”offered Tugger giving his hand to Quaxo who sighed “Do you promise it will be … legal-?”asked Quaxo hesitantly and Tugger smiled “I promise!Now come on!”said Tugger taking Quaxo’s hand and gently forcing the shorter male to stand up.  
Holding hands they carefully moved between the sleeping passengers of the train, they felt like thieves in the night but the safety that brought, finally holding hands standing closely, Quaxo would even compare it to one of those romantic scenes in the books he was reading if their destination wasn’t the train toilets. “Fuck where is it!?”hissed Tugger as he looked around “Look in front of you-”pointed out Quaxo as he was looking at a Russian sigh, he didn’t understand it but it pointed to a door that looked like a bathroom door. “My clever little angel~”purred Tugger as he quickly pulled the other male close forcing him to stand next to him and gave him a peck on the cheek “Keep it discreet-”hissed Quaxo before moving forward not letting go of Tugger’s hand, it pained Quaxo so much to ignore Tugger and react coldly at the kiss, sure he wasn’t much for physical contact but the lack of it made Quaxo needing it more. 

“Not really impressive for a first date, I thought you were the experienced one-”joked Quaxo as he was leaning against the bathroom door with Tugger inside doing, doing his thing. “Exactly you thought you were into women 6 days ago, so let the experienced one handle it~. But Angel, this isn’t our first date, we’ve hung out before”said Tugger from the other side of the door. “I knew I wasn't into women-”hissed Quaxo hitting the door gently and threateningly “Oh please be my guest walk in, I’m not done yet!”said Tugger a little too loudly this time and chuckled. “Ew-”hissed Quaxo moving away from the door as he held back a smirk, talking to Tugger so freely again without having to mind anyone and anything was a little too important to Quaxo.

Tugger stayed inside for a little longer, he liked the fact that him and Quaxo could relax as they had a door to separate them and everyone was asleep, ending this moment seemed like a terrifying thing to do. But he soon opened the door smiling at Quaxo who just chuckled, the taller male offered his hand to the other but Quaxo shook his head and started making his way back to the others “Aw come on why not-?”whined Tugger quietly and Quaxo looked back at him “I don’t trust where that hand has been-”he said smirking at the other and Tugger huffed as he followed the other. 

They spend the night sitting by the window doing their favorite thing, nothing, sitting together of course a small distance between them, both of them more worried about Munkustrap’s reaction rather than law. But they knew that Munk just cared and wanted to make sure they can actually enjoy their relationship at a safer place, outside of prison. Slowly the two drifted back to sleep, Tugger was first leaving Quaxo unable to look at the stars, no matter how beautiful the starry sky was it seemed meaningless next to Tugger’s sleeping figure. Stars had lost their brightness, the dark background had stopped complimenting the small lights, the whole sky was now on Tugger, the moonlight shining on his face as the train went on traveling to Beijing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //I'm extremely anxious since in most fics Tugger is the one that has been mostly affect by his and Munk's older brother but idk i felt like it wouldn't match my story that much, anyway i hope people won't mind this.  
> Also in case Teazer's and Jerrie's accents suck i'm really sorry I'm not good with accents.  
> Thanks for reading this far, I hope you enjoyed.
> 
> Comments, suggestions, feedback and kudos are appreciated~


	2. Don't get used at pretending

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tugger has to announce to his friends that him and Quaxo are together and in which Quaxo gets to see the rest of the band. Also Teazer and Jerrie shamelessly flexing their skills - 
> 
> What will their reactions be~?
> 
> ✨I can't write summaries, can you feel my pain-?✨

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ✨ I DID a summary again, I'll probably edit everything to make one for every chapter. ANYWAY thank you so much for reading this far it means a lot, just knowing that people actually bother to read this is important to me and i hope the story has been enjoyable at first. I'm sorry if there's not too much angst I just don't feel like i'll be good at writing angsty stuff-
> 
> ALSO if you have any better name ideas for the series tell me in the comments or just DM me on instagram (my username is on my profile). I liked Beijing and i give every fic a city name so yeah i like this but i need names for the series cause 'Cities of love' ain't gonna work i know it - (YOU will get credited if i pick your idea of course)

“WAKE UP YA LOVEBIRDS!”yelled Teazer looking at Quaxo and Tugger who had fallen asleep at a seat by the window. Quaxo opened his eyes quickly and jumped a little in surprise, he wasn’t used to people waking him up especially not so suddenly, he was always able to sleep for as long as he wanted and since his uncle raised him to follow a certain routine he never really overslept without needing someone to wake him up. Tugger on the other hand, still somewhat sleeping, gave Teazer the middle finger only to have Mungojerrie lean closer to his ear with a smirk and whisper “Oh you know where to put that~”he purred quietly looking at Quaxo. This was too much Quaxo blushed and stood up going to his bag needing an excuse to get away from the awkward moment. Before Munkustrap could scold the twins for not being careful enough Teazer eye rolled “Munk no one ‘ere speaks English chill n' even if a couple o’ people do, they wouldn’t call the police!”she said crossing his arms and Quaxo looked out of the window surprised, he had fallen asleep in Russia but they were now in China “A-And i don’t think we’re in Russia anymore-”he breathed out in amazement as he looked outside the window taking in the new scenery, Russia was different from London but China was like a whole new world. 

“Impressed-?”Asked Tugger, smirking as he looked at Quaxo, he was more impressed by the surprise and interest that was drawn all over Quaxo’s face rather than the chinese capital. “Yes a little, I’ve never been in another continent or so far away from home-”mumbled Quaxo in thought still looking outside the window “If you’re feeling weird we can take the next train back to London it’s fine!”said Tugger, quickly moving to sit next to Quaxo who was sitting on his legs on the small train couch, his face against the window. “Aren’t you a little too close-?”pointed out Quaxo with a sigh and Tugger smirked sitting next to Quaxo and wrapped his arm around Quaxo’s shoulders “I’ve already asked my homosexuality-laws guide, Munk, here we are just considered mentally ill, plus if you’re feeling homesick I want to be close to you it’s kind of my fault you’re here-”said Tugger chuckling.  
Upon hearing that he wasn’t going to get into too much trouble with the law Quaxo relaxed against the other’s touch smiling a little to himself “I’m feeling fine Tugger!”he said and looked at the taller male before glancing back outside the window, honestly he was missing seeing something at least a little familiar but Tugger’s presence and touch made everything better, he would get used to it, especially if he had Tugger. It’s really weird how someone so new to Quaxo could make him feel comfortable, that’s when Quaxo recalled something Plato had said, that he felt at home around Vicky or something like that, that was pretty much what Quaxo was feeling was right now. 

“I’m glad to hear that Angel, I’ll make sure you’ll have a great time here!”said Tugger cheerfully and the shorter male nodded still smiling softly “I’m sure you will-”he said and he really meant it, Tugger was probably one of the most sensitive and caring people he had met relying only on his feelings so Quaxo was sure he’d do anything to make him enjoy his time here. “Good we can do all sorts of chinese things together!”said Tugger just as excited as before smiling widely “Chinese things?”asked Quaxo raising an eyebrow “Like, fireworks and…. noodles and - “said Tugger in thought as he tried to come up with ‘Chinese things’ “Did you already run out of ideas-?”Asked Quaxo in amusement and Tugger chuckled nervously.  
“God you’re such a bore and it’s still morning-”said Quaxo, eye rolling again and Tugger held him a little tighter and a little closer “Oh how do you even put up with me my little butterfly~?”purred the taller male earning a sigh from the other “So you will either call me an insect or an angel-?”he asked, chuckling “Well, butterflies and fireflies are the good type of bugs!”protested Tugger defending the pet names he used for the other “I don’t really like butterflies, I’m more a spider-type of person you know, but they aren’t really insects-”said Quaxo quietly in thought, he had read it in a book once and it was one of the things that actually surprised him. 

“You can be my ladybug!”suggested Tugger. Teazer and Jerrie were just looking at the two with grossed out faces commenting secretly on everything they were saying. “Ladybug has the word lady in it, I already look really short compared to you, I don’t want you calling me anything that has ‘lady’ in it-”said Quaxo dryly glaring at Tugger for even suggesting it. “Are ya guys comin’ up with pet names together-?”asked Jerrie holding back a laugh and Teazer looked at her brother grinning widely “Oh Jerrie i will call ya bunny~”she said mockingly and Jerrie laughed loudly enough to get many people’s attention. “Ya will be my little fox!”said Jerrie smirking and his sister chuckled “Ya could ‘ave come up with something better!”she said and her brother shrugged “I mean I’m better at this than Tugger!”said Jerrie with a shrug and Quaxo chuckled and nodded. 

“Even you my Angel, i feel so betrayed~”purred Tugger, a dramatic gasp escaping his lips and Quaxo eye rolled mouthing the word ‘boring’ to Tugger who just smirked proudly for getting the other’s attention. 

Then the train stopped “Alright so i’ve been reading this map and our apartment should be a 20 minute walk, we will go there and probably meet up with Bombalurina, Demeter and Alonzo-”said Munkustrap happily, he had really missed his best friend and his girlfriend. “Demeter is his girlfriend right?”asked Quaxo quietly and Teazer nodded “Yeah and Bomba is Tugs’ ex~”purred Teazer smirking widely and Quaxo looked back at Tugger nervously worrying that this would be too awkward and now even worried about how much Tugger actually liked him, he could still have feelings for ex not that Quaxo was jealous or anything he just wanted to avoid any sort of pain this was his first time completely following his heart and the last thing he wanted was to end up heartbroken in Beijing.  
“Hey if you’re gonna inform him at least do it properly!Bomba had a huge childhood crush on me, after the War ended I was 16 and i hadn’t really met many girls due to the war and the constant bombings, her and Dem were our neighbors i knew Bomba well so i decided to try it out, the first weeks were really cool honestly and God sex is amazing, but after the thrill had passed we were kind of back to being best friends we were pretty much broken up, so we made it official after some months! By the time I had already met a new girl anyway and Bomb was finally over me!”said Tugger forcing a smirk on his face trying to act as cool as possible but he was terrified of Quaxo’s reaction, all of his previous affairs ended up whining whenever they found out that Tugger was best friends with his first relationship. Instead Quaxo just nodded “Are you fine-?”asked Tugger a little more worried now, silence usually meant some bad reaction “Yes of course, don’t flatter yourself if you say that it’s over i believe you, i can’t do anything else anyway can I?”asked Quaxo calmly, raising an eyebrow as he looked at Tugger. He honestly believed Tugger, if said him and that Bombalurina were just friends he was more than certain of it, Tugger was an honest and sincere person which is one of the qualities Quaxo loved and admired. Also Tugger hadn’t really confirmed dating Quaxo officially so Quaxo himself didn’t want to run to any conclusions, they hadn’t agreed on anything thet hadn’t announced or said anything more formally so he couldn’t assume him and Tugger were exclusive.  
“Woah ‘e took it much better than the previous ones!”pointed out Jerrie smiling and Tugger glared at him, he didn’t want Quaxo to think of him as some sort of player. “How many girls have you dated?”asked Quaxo laughing a little, he didn’t mind talking about Tugger’s relationships. “Not that many!”said Tugger quickly “Yeah there was Bomba and then Elaine, Diane she was really hot actually, blond hair curvy body ya know really hot!”said Jerrie laughing “Oh oh don’t forget the one with the weird voice AND this cute little French girl, she didn’t speak English but she sure spoke the language of love~”purred Teazer and before Jerrie could open his mouth and continue the list Munkustrap spoke up “Gather your things we should be arriving in 5 minutes!”he advised and everyone, except Quaxo who was already ready to go, started putting away their sleeping bags and anything they had taken out. Tugger then looked at Munkustrap’s map and the small markings he had made on it “We still have 15 minutes till we reach the station-”whispered Tugger and his brother smiled proudly and nodded “Indeed-”he said quietly and Tugger grinned “Thanks for saving me…”mumbled Tugger and his brother just smiled and nodded.

The rest of their ride was pretty silent Quaxo still looking outside the window taking everything in, for a guy that the furthest he had gone in the last 20 years was the corner grocery store or occasionally his uncle’s house, who lived some streets away from Quaxo, this was so new so weird he just couldn’t take it in that quickly. Teazer and Jerrie were trying to help out Munkustrap who was comparing an English map of Beijing to a Russian one, Munkustrap was a man of accuracy he didn’t want just an English map, it could be outdated or have mistakes, he planned on getting a Chinese one too, not only as a souvenir but also to make sure he’d be the best guide for his friends. Tugger was just messing with his pack of cigarettes as he took occasional glances outside the window and at Quaxo’s slim figure, that boy could look handsome even when he was just standing still. His poise, stance, expression his everything was so elegant and graceful, he made looking outside of a window look like the most expensive, privileged thing in the world, Tugger didn’t know if it was how Quaxo had been raised, or if it was the ballet, or it was just a biologically thing or an side effect of being -probably- in love with him.

“We’re here!”yelled Teazer eagerly as she took the guitar and her luggage. “I want to help with carrying, I can take that heavy bag!”offered Quaxo, pointing at the heavier bag, everyone had taken turns carrying it. “It’s fine!”said Munkustrap quickly as he picked up the bag himself and Jerrie took the bass. “Angel this bag is probably heavier than you!”commented, Tugger his usual smirk on his face. That’s all Quaxo needed to huff and snatch the bag away from Munkustrap as he followed Teazer who had rushed outside and muttered things like ‘I’m not that small’ or ‘I’m a dancer I work out’ ‘Tugger sits on his ass all day and thinks he’s stronger’. Jerrie laughed “He has guts-”he pointed out with amusement as he went outside and Tugger smirked as he planned a way to get the bag away from Quaxo or at least help him out. Munkustrap just smiled, he was really liking Quaxo, and he followed the rest out of the train before turning around to make sure they hadn’t left anything behind.  
The exited the station Teazer and Quaxo were the two most excited ones so they were a little ahead with Jerrie trying to catch up but getting mixed up in the crowd. 

“Edmund!”breathed out a female voice before running up to Munkustrap giving him a tight hug and smiling. Munkustrap was caught by surprise but as soon as he noticed who was hugging him he dropped his bag and held on the woman tightly “Demeter we agreed to call him Munkustrap, NOT Edmund!”yelled Tugger eye rolling, he liked Demeter but she could be so annoying. Demeter gave Tugger a quick glare before turning back to Munkustrap and picking up his bag “Let me help you with that!”she said smiling, she had missed her boyfriend so much and Munkustrap had missed her too “How was your trip?”she asked quickly as Alonzo made their way to them and gave Munkustrap a smile. “It was really nice actually!”replied Munkustrap as he let go of Demeter and went to give his best friend a hug. No one had really noticed Quaxo who just looked like an outsider now.

“Tugs!”said a red-haired woman who walked up to Tugger smirking a little “Did you get any-?”she asked laughing and Tugger sighed dramatically “Sadly not!How about you?”he asked, smirking as well and his friend shook her head “You have ruined other men for me~”she purred and Tugger smirked “I get that a lot!”he replied confidently earning a playful eye roll from Bombalurina, a sigh from his brother and his girlfriend and a small smirk from Alonzo.  
Jerrie and Teazer went to stand next to Quaxo, they had been in the band for 5 years but they were pretty new and they were each other’s best friends, unlike Alonzo who had gotten really close to Munkustrap the two twins sure were close to everyone but mostly themselves they also know what being the new felt like better than anyone. “Give ‘em s’me time!”said Jerrie playfully nudging Quaxo who simply shrugged “How come you two don’t get a warm welcome-?”asked Quaxo and Teazer giggled “Well ya see, Lonz ‘n’ Munk are best friends ‘n’ got close pretty quickly, ‘n’ Dem is Munk’s girlfriend and Tugs n’ Bomb are best friends ‘n’ childhood friends!”explained Teazer and Jerrie chuckled “Teazer ‘n’ I are each other’s best friend!”added Jerrie and his sister nodded “Yeah, we’ll get a warm welcome too but let ‘em talk to their loved ones, they ‘aven’t seen ‘em in 10 days!” said the female twin. 

“Oh who’s that!?”asked Bombalurina as she examined Quaxo finally noticing him “So Jo has found a boyfriend!How sweet”exclaimed Demeter smiling as she finally noticed Quaxo and she was examining him as well, he looked pretty nice, his vest his bowtie the sparkly blazer in his hand, neat expensive-looking black pants, just what Teazer needed to ‘straighten her up’ a little bit, according to Demeter at least. Quaxo blushed nervously, he didn’t expect such an introduction he just looked frozen as Jerrie and Teazer smirked devilishly “Oh this is too good-”said Jerrie looking at his sister.  
“Actually Dem-”said Tugger as he made his way over to Quaxo gently pushing Teazer away from Quaxo’s side to emphasize his words and wrapped his arm around Quaxo’s waist “I don’t like you hugging my waist i feel too short-”hissed Quaxo quietly and Tugger laughed ignoring Quaxo “You see Dem, ‘Jo’ didn’t found a boyfriend, Tugger found a boyfriend!”he announced a cheeky grin on the tall blond’s face as Alonzo and Bomba smirked proudly at Tugger for how he announced it -Alonzo was trying to put on a stern and serious face-, Munkustrap face palmed and Demeter gasped looking shocked. Jerrie and Teazer had moved away from the group to laugh their asses off as they watched the ‘announcement’, everyone’s reaction was priceless, they did care about their friends but this was too amusing for the twins. Quaxo blushed madly at that, Tugger should have told him that they were officially a couple before going off and making such an announcement he was just speechless and frozen he couldn’t react, he was happy but he didn’t want Tugger’s friends to think poorly of him due to Tugger’s stupidity.

“Nice job!”cheered Bombalurina still smirking at her friend who nodded “I know thank you!”said Tugger still smirking “Also Munk don’t be such a virgin, we’re not in Russia I won’t go to prison worst case me and Quaxo end up in a mental hospital, we pass all the other mental tests and we’re set free after a week or group therapy or something!”said Tugger his usual smirk on his face. Munkustrap sighed “Don’t take everything so lightly”he said and looked at his brother with a look of disapproval on his face. “Oh trust me Munk, homosexuality is just like chokers!”said Tugger chuckling. “Old-fashioned and kitch?”teased Quaxo quietly, he didn’t feel really comfortable with talking to anyone but he couldn’t just ignore the mention of the old fashioned accessory Tugger liked so much. “No my angel, they are going to be normal and if not popular in the future~”cooed Tugger quietly only to get an eye roll as a response from his magical boyfriend.  
Demeter who was still in shock, didn’t mind homosexuality of course she just had lost any respect she had for both Tugger and his new boyfriend. “Let’s just get going-”she said as she moved ahead with Munkustrap following close behind him. Alonzo sighed as he took the bass away from Jerrie “Tugger you should have placed that more smoothly-”scolded him Alonzo but the younger male just shrugged “I mean it’s not fault Demeter dislikes me, no matter how i worded she’d still react like a virgin-”muttered Tugger before taking one of handles of the heavier bag “We’ll both carry it?Come on!”said Tugger and Quaxo, still in shock, just nodded and let Tugger help him. 

Teazer and Jerrie wanted to start teasing the new couple but they knew it wasn’t the right time so they went to Bombalurina and Alonzo who were motioning for them to join them and the twins knew what they wanted. Information on Quaxo not to check if he was good enough for Tugger but simply for the sake of gossiping, these four didn’t hang out that much but gossiping was their thing, they loved discussing everything and today’s gossip was about their friend. Munkustrap tried to stay away from talking about others behind their back, same with Demeter she didn’t want to get involved, Tugger’s opinion on gossiping depended on his mood and on the topic of the conversation. Bombalurina and the twins though were up to talking about anything and comment and despite Alonzo sometimes denying it he loved it as well, so whenever they saw something worth commenting they’d gather up and chat.

Tugger took glances at Quaxo and at Demeter and his brother, maybe he was too rough with the announcement, now Demeter and Munkustrap were probably complaining about him again and poor Quaxo was too lost in his thoughts. Instead of speaking he focused on the couple ahead of them and he could catch some phrases and words mostly due to everyone around them speaking Chinese so his brain just automatically blocked any distractions, he was used to Demeter whining about him and Munkustrap’s occasional disapproval of his antics but he hated how they didn’t understood that Quaxo was different.  
Tugger heard words like ‘Stupid flirts’ or ‘relies on looks’, ‘gets bored of them’, “I can’t believe how anyone is stupid enough to fall for him, especially in 6 days!” said Demeter huffing and before Munkustrap could protest Quaxo had dropped half of the heavy bag leaving it all to Tugger and rushed to the couple.

“Demeter, would you mind us talking and walking together for the rest of the walk?”Asked Quaxo politely to everyone’s surprise, no one was expecting such a calm nice polite reaction after Demeter’s rude snarky comment. The blond woman glanced at her own boyfriend as if asking him for his opinion, Munkustrap just nodded and went to help Tugger out with the bag, soon Quaxo took his place standing next to Demeter.  
“I am sorry if i insulted you…”apologized Demeter nervously, other girls of Tugger she had insulted would have freaked out or start screaming about true love, “Honestly i understand, I know Tugger is a flirt, I’m assuming you just don’t like seeing people heartbroken after Tugger has left them, you just want the best!”said Quaxo, smiling at her and the woman nodded “Yes exactly, he just sees this whole thing as an experiment going off into a relationship with anyone he can, he doesn’t realize that he needs to get his life sorted out and that these are actual human feelings he’s messing with!”said Demeter groaning, she actually didn’t dislike Tugger that much, no she cared about him deeply she was just too worried about how he was turning out to be. He even reminded her a bit of Maxwell and the pain Demeter felt when he just left after taking advantage of her was the worst feeling she has ever felt, so she wants to avoid other people from feeling even the slightest of the pain she felt at that moment, loving someone who would later on just turn their back at you.  
“Relationship is a strong word, I think he was mostly flirting, I don’t even know if that is what he’s doing with me-”said Quaxo smiling nervously as he looked back at Tugger who was now talking to his brother, “But even if he’s just messing with me, it’ll be worth it, I know that he’ll break up with me in a nice way, he’s really sensitive and sweet actually you know. I’m from London and I’m a coward i hold myself back i’m surprised i even came this far with Tugger, but he keeps checking on me to see if I’m homesick and he has been nothing but honest with me, I know about his previous flirst, Diane was the hot one and Elaine and there was the one with the weird voice-”said Quaxo his tone a little nervous as he tried to recall all the girls Jerrie and Teazer had mentioned. 

“Anyway, he helped me, I don’t know if that is what he has done with the girls he has dated before, or if those girls were any different than I am, but I’d appreciate it if you gave me and even Tugger a second chance?”said Quaxo still anxiously, he wanted Demeter to like him, she seemed like a really nice woman and he couldn’t stay mad at her, especially considering what she had been through. He knew about Maxwell, he knew how much it had affected her and knowing that Quaxo completely justified and understood her reaction.

“I don’t know if Tugger is different-”said Demeter looking back at her boyfriend and his brother before turning to smile a little at Quaxo “But you are different from the previous girls, so i owe you an apology!”she said and the short male next to her nodded happily “Thank you, it means a lot to hear it from you!”he said and she chuckled “So you know him for 7 days huh-?He must have been really nice, you seem clever, a little too clever to be dating Tugger-”muttered Demeter playfully another chuckle escaping her lips. “Yes but we didn’t talk much on the 5th day. It’s really weird i would have mocked anyone that claimed to be in love after spending less than 6 days with someone let alone follow him-”breathed out Quaxo, it was the first time he was saying these to anyone but he felt comfortable around Demeter, she seemed nice and mature enough. “So how come you’re not mocking yourself for doing that-?”asked Demeter playfully, raising an eyebrow as she scanned the boy next to her. 

“I grew up in London in a wealthy house with my uncle and my twin sister and I’ve always felt as though i have to hold back, hide a part of myself from everyone but my uncle, sister and Plato, my best friend and my sister’s fiance. Everyone was sneaky, judgy, two-faced and snobby, in my eyes, so I was distant, especially after my sister and Plato moved to Russia. I never really felt safe and I always found excuses for not doing things I wanted. With Tugger though, after 10 minutes i felt safe, you know, as if i can let my guard down, I didn’t have to watch my every move and word and he made me realize how foolish I’ve been. So with my sister’s and Plato’s support i ended up here-”explained Quaxo blushing a little as he realized that he might have said too much, God Demeter must have lost interest by the second sentence, instead of a plain typical reaction Demeter just side-hugged him nervously and smiled “I understand that, that feeling is beautiful cherish it!”she said Quaxo laughed and returned the hug “I will, thanks!... So are we on better terms now?”asked Quaxo hesitantly only to receive a nod from the woman “Obviously!”she agreed quickly.  
The two kept laughing and chatting until they reached the small apartment Munkustrap had rented for the following 2 weeks they were going to spend in Beijing.

Soon they were all standing in front of a three-floor building, it stood out amongst the shortest buildings around it “It was the cheapest i could find-”mumbled Munkustrap as he noticed how old and poor the building their temporary apartment was at. “So anyway 4 of us will need to stay at this motel next door-”announced Munkustrap as he pointed a cheap motel that was a few blocks away “It’s really cheap and sadly we can’t all fit into the house comfortably, it’s small and it only has one bedroom meaning that someone will sleep in the two-seated house and the other on the floor, the people staying in the house will of course be the ones to have the instruments and everything valuable”continued Munkustrap feeling guilty for not being able to find a house for all of his friends, it was his fault they had to split. He then took out some money “I think these are enough to rent two rooms in the motel-”he finished heaving a sigh of disappointment, he was in charge of such things he couldn’t go and make mistakes.  
“Hey Munk, even better me and Quaxo get a private room to ourselves!”said Tugger, smirking as he handed the heavy bag to Munkustrap “Now we shall get going~”he purred excitedly. “Aye!Wait for us!”yelled Teazer as she took the money away from Munkustrap and joined Quaxo and Tugger Jerrie rushing behind them. 

“So we split the money in half-?”suggested Tugger and Quaxo shook his head “Tugs ya should know by now that we don’t need money~”purred Jerrie proudly a cocky smirk on his face as he looked at his sister who nodded the same smirk on her face “Yes!Let us show ya two ‘ow it’s done!”she said and turned to look Jerrie, just one look was enough for the two of them to know that they had come up with the same crazy idea “Quaxo, can ya please lend me some of yer fancy clothes-?”asked Jerrie and QUaxo nodded, handing him his luggage. The twins disappeared going off into a small alleyway. Less than 10 minutes later Mungojerrie was wearing one of Quaxo’s expensive shirts and a pair of black dress pants, Teazer followed soon behind him wearing a nice red dress, a white large hat and matching red lipstick along with a pearl necklace. 

“I swear I didn't carry the dress and lipstick with me!”said Quaxo quickly as Tugger smirked and looked at him in amusement, ready to tease him,but Teazer laughed “We know, i got the necklace and the lipstick from a woman on the first train, the dress is Demeter’s and the hat is mine!”she explained and Tugger laughed “Still i bet you’d look awesome in a dress my angel~”he purred and Quaxo glared at him “Ew- no i don’t even want to think of that again-!”whined Quaxo eye rolling as the four of them approached the motel. Quaxo and Tugger walked inside, using the money they had to get a nice room and thanked the receptionist who surprisingly spoke English fairly well. “Should we wait for Teazer and Jerrie-?”whispered Quaxo, still not sure of what those two had in mind, they couldn’t pretend to be rich fancy clients, this plan had so many mistakes, and how would that even get them out of having to pay for their room.

Soon the twins ,now looking less identical as they were wearing so different clothes and the makeup and the hat kind of covered Teazer’s face. “We would like your finest room please-”asked Jerrie now, having a British accent instead of his usual one. And once the receptionist gave them a price Jerrie chuckled “You don’t want me to actually pay do you-?”asked Jerrie looking at the woman behind the desk, his voice radiating superiority and snobbism. “Do you have any idea who he is-?”Asked Teazer who now had a British accent as well.  
Quaxo was left speechless “Keep watching-”muttered Tugger chuckling quietly.  
“I’m Charles Clinton!”said Jerrie before taking out a passport and showing it to the receptionist who examined it curiously.  
Quaxo was now beyond speechless, how did Jerrie have Charles Clinton’s passport? He had met the man and now that he thought about it Jerrie did resemble him a little despite the age difference but still, he doubted that Clinton’s name was just as popular in China it was in England. The Clintons were one of the wealthiest families in London, they weren’t close with Quaxo’s family but he had seen the Clintons a few times in some large events, never liked them too much though he didn’t bother to talk to them, his uncle wasn’t fond of them either so he didn’t know many things. But he knew that they were rich and their name meant something, not as much as the Jones’ name but still.

The receptionist of course didn’t know the name of a rich British family but Teazer smirked “Maybe this can jog your memory-”she said and flashed a small gold and black pin, the woman behind the desk was now shivering her hands shaking as she took a pair of keys out of the drawer and handed them to Jerrie “Yeah that’s what i thought-”he said scoffing before taking Teazer’s hand and walking towards the direction of the rooms and where Quaxo and Tugger were waiting for them.  
“H-How did you have Clinton’s passport?And what made you think that she’d know Clinton we’re not in Britain-”said Quaxo looking with amazement at the two twins. They started walking motioning for Quaxo and Tugger to follow which they did “I stole the passport last time i was ‘ome-”explained Jerrie smirking proudly now every trace of his previous British accent was gone. “H-Home-?”Asked Quaxo but Teazer talked before Jerrie had the chance to answer “And the plan was never to impress here with the Clinton passport, we just give show a rich powerful name ‘n’ then i flash the triad pin!”explained Teazer giggling as she showed Quaxo her pin “Ohh from your pin collection!!?”asked Tugger and the twins nodded.  
“Triad is like the Chinese mafia, are you insane!?”asked Quaxo.

“It got us a free room didn’t it-?I see nothin’ wrong with that!”said Teazer proudly before placing the pin back in her bag. Quaxo chuckled, these two were pretty amazing, a great team, really good thieves and liars their plans were all well-thought and almost flawless even if something went wrong they had a backup plan it was impressive to see those to work together, they were surely and interesting an interesting  
“You have a pin collection-?”Asked Quaxo and Jerrie nodded “Yeah, all sorts of pins, triad, yakuza, many family crests and such, we stole ‘em all from London!”he said proudly “You have no idea how powerful some of these are!”exclaimed Teazer happily.  
“Yeah yeah little pointy accessories and their power and drawings, not interesting, let’s just go to our rooms!!”whined Tugger and took Quaxo’s hand dragging him away from the twins “Don’t be such a bore and don’t interrupt my conversation!” protested Quaxo and Tugger huffed “We will finally have a room to ourselves haven’t you missed this-?”Asked Tugger quietly only to get a small nod and a smile from the other.  
“If you need anything knock our door!”yelled Tugger as he looked at his two friends who were still looking for their own room before unlocking the door to his and Quaxo’s room and entering, throwing his bag on the empty bed. “God Tugger no!That bag has been dragged around public means of transportation in Russia and China and i honestly don’t want to know where else!Don’t throw it on our clean sheets!”hissed Quaxo who quickly ran to take the bag of the bed only to drop it as soon as he noticed the bathroom. He hadn’t taken a bath in ages and Quaxo was usually the type to bathe at least once in two days, he was really clean and neat so having not at least had a shower in 9 days seemed like a nightmare that he couldn’t wait to put an end to.

Tugger smirked and went behind Quaxo hugging his waist and resting his head on the shorter’s male shoulder before giving him a peck on the cheek “I’ve missed that-”mumbled Tugger and the other looked at him curiously “I don’t recall ever being in this exact same position-”mumbled Quaxo and Tugger sighed “I meant that i generally missed touching you, hugging you giving you kisses you know that sort of things-”he explained with a smirk before pulling down on the bed with him to lay together as he held tightly and lovingly on his waist. “No no no we’re dirty our clothes probably stink, I know that yours stink, the sheets are clean i don’t want to ruin them!”whined Quaxo who kicked and struggled to force Tugger to let go off him. “They are the sheets of probably the cheapest hotel in China, you’re the cleanest person to ever touch these-”muttered Tugger as he gently nuzzled Quaxo’s neck.  
“Alright that thought is extremely disturbing thank you very much-”said Quaxo as he finally stopped protesting and relaxed against Tugger’s touch. “How are you feeling?”Asked Tugger as he closed his eyes feeling calm and relaxed and just taking in the perfect moment. “I am rather peckish but other than that I’m fine, you don’t have to check on me every 5 minutes Tugger”said Quaxo chuckling as he closed his eyes as well and curled up a little, Tugger’s touch was so comforting to him, he was afraid of even admitting the amount of comfort and safety he felt around Tugger.

“It is my fault you’re here and not in Vladivostok with your family, I want to make sure you don’t mind-”explained Tugger sleepily as he held on the other a little more tightly now his eyes still closed of course. “If i went with Victoria I’d be probably reading War and Peace, this is much better than any book in the world-”breathed out Quaxo sleepily and Tugger smirked “You kept reading about true love and now you’re experiencing it~”purred Tugger only to earn a chuckle from the other “Aren’t you getting a little ahead of yourself-?”muttered Quaxo sleepily “You’re not denying it though!”pointed out Tugger excitedly before kissing Quaxo’s neck again.  
Both of them were exhausted, Quaxo hadn’t slept on a nice bed in 2 days, one of these days he had spent crying and the other traveling and walking so having a nice large bed was nice. Tugger on the other hand wasn’t sleepy, he just needed some rest but he enjoyed having Quaxo sleeping in his arms, he could look at him and admire him, he kind of wanted to get up, get more comfortable or explore the tiny room but he didn’t want to disturb his angel. “Tugger, a-are we … ?”asked Quaxo hesitantly at some point after he had woken up. “We aren’t ill-”muttered Tugger not sure of what the other meant “No no I know we’re not ill, but are we…. er you just called me your … “Quaxo couldn’t find the words, actually he could but he was worried of making a fool of himself.  
“Ohhh~I know what this is about~”purred Tugger smirking proudly, he wanted to say a simple yes to Quaxo but he wanted to hear him use the terms ‘couple’ or ‘boyfriend’, not only just cause Tugger had imagined that moment many times before, but it’ll also help Quaxo be more in terms with the idea. “Good, so are we?”Asked Quaxo looking at him and Tugger laughed lowly “I want to hear you say it!”he said and Quaxo felt his face heat up as he looked away nervously, he opened his mouth but he couldn’t speak. That didn’t happen much but he hated it whenever it happened, not being able to find the right words, not finding a way to put his thoughts into words. “Yes we are, don’t trouble your little head-”said Tugger smiling softly at him. 

“So we are a-a … couple?”Asked Quaxo quietly and Tugger’s smile at that moment was the happiest, most bright and sincere smile a man could have, he was actually in love, it’s stupid, it’s rational it made no sense but Tugger couldn’t help it. “Of course we are, if you want to of course!”said Tugger now examining Quaxo for any sign of discomfort or awkwardness “I think i’d like that”said Quaxo quietly and Tugger kissed the other’s neck once again. “BUT i want a more romantic and better first kiss, I don’t know when but I don’t want to count the one on the train!”added Quaxo quickly and Tugger laughed “Yes yes leave it to me!But how do you know that you won’t be the one to kiss me?You’re short sure but i bet you can reach me-”said Tugger but groaned as Quaxo nudged him “Don’t call me short, but if you haven’t realized it yet I’m not the type to decide on what they want and then act upon it-”mumbled Quaxo. It was true and Tugger knew it “Yeah yeah fair enough, don’t worry, leave it to me, I’ll give you a first kiss worth remembering that will put all those romantic novels to shame!”exclaimed Tugger proudly and Quaxo hummed and nodded as he snuggled closer to Tugger falling asleep again.

v

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ✨THANKS for reading!I hope you liked it!  
> TO ANYONE that likes Demeter i like her too, I'm sorry if i did something wrong or OOC or if she was too mean I'm doing her justice in the next chapters i promise!
> 
> Once again reminding you that if you have better names for the series tell me in the comments or my insta
> 
> Lastly, kudos, feedback, suggestions, thoughts and comments are more than welcomed and appreaciated!  
> ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨


	3. Courage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loll so Tugger and Quaxo get to have their first date, somewhat!  
> Jerrie and Teazer are flexing their skills again.   
> Quaxo gets a fashion makeover, but as he returns to his room he realizes something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEYYY thanks for reading this far, i haven't edited this chapter as much as the rest but i still hope you'll like it!

Quaxo fell asleep fairly easy, he required sleep and he could literally sleep anywhere if he was really tired, Tugger on the other hand wasn't that tired, he just needed to lay down for a few minutes maybe take a quick shower and buy a cheap coffee from somewhere, he didn't want to sleep. But he did want to have Quaxo sleeping in his arms, he loved this, feeling Quaxo's breathing, his body heat and watching how peaceful he was when he slept. At that moment Tugger was feeling as if he was holding the most precious and fragile thing in the world and he wouldn't trade that feeling for anything, but he also couldn't wait to spend more time around Quaxo. It was a weird feeling but Tugger planned on loving every phase and part of this relationship, the first weeks and days were they’d get to have the first kiss explore the newfound feelings and passion, then gradually become even more casual and comfortable with each other.  
Usually Tugger didn't want the spark of his relationships to go away, which is why he broke up quickly, he was terrified of the prospect of having to take care of the other person when they were sick or even having his partner take care of him when he was sick, tissues, vomits, fever ew only gross things. Or stuff like arguing about someone not picking up the dirty socks, sharing everything in the house, knowing even weird things about each other. Tugger lived with his father and brother but they were family it was different, he didn't want to actually love someone as much as he loved his friends and family. He needed space, boundaries and when things started to get too serious and gross he broke up without even thinking about it twice, this wasn't for him, he didn't want the 'spend the rest of your life with someone' or 'in sickness and in health' any of those cliché things seemed too intimate for him. Kissing, touching private places or even making love were no problem to him, these didn't mean much they showed sexual attraction but they didn't show romantic attraction.

His world, philosophies, lifestyle and ideals came to end though after spending some days with the short magician, he actually couldn't wait to have a gross relationship with him, get to know every detail he can about him, share a bed, a house, and a lifetime. It sounded cheesy Tugger felt like a complete fool for liking someone he had just met that much and he was afraid of his feelings going away, he couldn't tell if he was this excited about all the previous relationships he'd had, every new relationship was thrilling for Tugger, what if Quaxo was just a thrill? Certainly it didn't feel like a simple thrill but he couldn't not think about it.

“Tugger?”Asked Quaxo slowly opening his eyes, it was dark now, he had spent all of the afternoon sleeping “You aren’t sleeping?Why did you let me sleep?”he asked sleepily and Tugger laughed “Why would i wake you up?”he asked, smirking and the other heaved a sigh “So you can leave and do something you like?You shouldn’t have wasted your whole afternoon with me!”said Quaxo yawning as he snuggled closer to Tugger without even realizing it -but of course not minding it-.

“I like napping with you, true i wouldn’t have minded hanging out with Bomba since i haven’t seen her in a while but we’ll have plenty of time to catch up!”he said cheerfully as he kissed Quaxo’s neck again, he loved his neck it was so pale and soft.  
Quaxo looked down in disappointment “You didn’t nap I just slept and you stood there, I’m sorry!”he mumbled nervously, he honestly felt bad, he had the habit of sleeping too much especially if he had been tired but he didn’t want to bore Tugger. “Hey hey it’s all my fault ok?I’m a terrible bore, you can’t deny it, I bored you to sleep alright?”Asked Tugger jokingly, this seemed to cheer Quaxo up as he laughed and nodded “You have a valid point there-”said Quaxo before squirming and getting out of Tugger’s girp, tough Tugger wasn’t trying to hold him, but Quaxo still felt proud. He stood up and looked through his bag before taking out his wallet and looking through it. “Wait you’re leaving-?”Asked Tugger pouting as he rolled on the bed. 

“I will go get something to eat, I’m starving-”explained Quaxo smiling as he put on a woolen grey jacket over his shirt, it was late and probably cold he didn’t want to risk it, “I like your sparkly clothes but you dress up like an old man sometimes!”commented Tugger as he got up and stood next to Quaxo “Isn’t it like super late-?”Asked Tugger and glanced outside the window it was indeed really dark, even Tugger who hadn’t really slept didn’t notice. “Yes but i am hungry- Also, i don’t take fashion advice from people who wear dog collars~”exclaimed Quaxo a sly smirk on his face before flicking Tugger’s choker playfully and going to the door. “It’s not a dog collar, you’ll love chokers one day~”purred Tugger as he followed the other, it was late but he could eat and he didn’t plan on leaving Quaxo all alone in a foreign country at night.   
They walked out of the room and through the reception, upon asking what time it was the lady replied it was 2 AM. “Don’t you have a concert tomorrow?”Asked Quaxo worriedly as he looked up at Tugger who shrugged “Probably, but i don’t need that much sleep, relax!”said Tugger and Quaxo sighed still in thought “But let’s hurry alright-?”he asked nervously not wanting to keep the other awake, though Tugger just chuckled and gave him a quick peck on the cheek “Don’t think so much, just enjoy our first short official date!”he said grinning, honestly the black-haired male couldn’t argue with that, he couldn’t spend the whole ‘date’ worrying he trusted Tugger. Holding hands the two of them walked out of the hotel, with the help of the receptionist they were able to exchange some of his pounds for yuan and the couple was soon standing out of the hotel looking around, hesitantly Quaxo moved away from Tugger letting go of his hand only to receive a pout and to have Tugger gently hold his hand again "I want to enjoy this let them look at me, at us, I don't care, it's late anyway I bet everyone is drunk -" said the blond male smirking, Quaxo could protest but he didn't want to, so instead he smiled and nodded. 

"That's my little angel ~" purred Tugger and the shorter male chuckled and eye rolled as he moved closer to him "You know just how to ruin a nice moment -" he muttered teasingly and Tugger shrugged "I have my ways!" he exclaimed with a smirk.  
The streets looked cold, not many people were out and the ones they were were druggies, drunks and sellers, the few businessmen and workers that were out at the time were all in their cars passing by going to their homes, there was a funny smell not a pleasant atmosphere. Quaxo’s grip on the other’s hand tightened he was 20 years old and he had never been out after midnight, he hadn’t noticed how weird things were, sure some shows and parties he had attended ended late but his uncle’s chauffeur drove him home he had never been outside walking calmly so late. “Getting a little nervous are we-?”teased Tugger, he himself was feeling somewhat tense but he had been out this time many times before, he wouldn't let his guard no, obviously not but he knew that it wasn't really dangerous. “No I’ve gone out many times before-”muttered Quaxo simply and Tugger rolled his eyes playfully knowing that the other was faking it. “Let’s get you something to eat, I never leave my dates hungry~”purred Tugger and Quaxo sighed “We don’t have a car, we don’t know the city, how will we get out?”asked Quaxo and Tugger smirked before taking Quaxo’s hand “I have an idea and we will have privacy-”he said softly and that made Quaxo relax.

Tugger led him back to the hotel much to Quaxo’s confusion, then he manically knocked on Jerrie’s and Teazer’s door “Hey dickheads wake up-!”said Tugger as he had been knocking on the door for at least 5-10 minutes, he kept knocking and soon Jerrie opened the door looking sleepily at him “What the fuck’s wrong with ya-?”asked Jerrie glaring at Tugger and Quaxo “Aye Jerrie!Who is it!?”asked Teazer from the inside “Tugger n’ ‘is boyfriend-”replied Jerrie looking back into his room “Hey i have a name!”said Quaxo eye rolling and Tugger ruffled Jerrie’s hair before taking Quaxo’s hand and forcing himself inside the room “I know i could count on your hospitality!”said Tugger smirking before opening the lights of the room and sitting on a small armchair, “‘ospitality my ass-”muttered Jerrie before sitting right next to his sister on their bed.   
“So, what do ya two want?”asked Teazer leaning against her brother smirking, they were both awake now, sadly. “Bear in mind it’ll cost ya!”added Jerrie quickly before looking at his sister who nodded in approval. “Help us break into the kitchen, my little angel is hungry and probably so am I!”he said and Quaxo looked at him “That’s illegal Tugger I’m not doing that!”protested the black-haired male quickly and the Teazer giggled as Jerrie smirked. “Hey we are paying the hotel, and no one will notice it!”said Tugger smiling at his boyfriend who still didn’t look too fond of the idea “Look when we leave we will give the receptionist an extra large tip ok-?”asked Tugger but Quaxo was still thinking about it.

“Quaxo, just see it as a gift from Jerrie n’ I a’right-?”asked Teazer, smiling kindly at the other now showing her more ‘mature’ side. “Besides, Teazer n’ I are important, I’m Charles Clinton n’ i have affiliations with the mafia, we deserve to be treated like royalty~”purred Jerrie proudly. “Hey please, it’s either that or canned fruit come on, I promised you a nice date and this is the only thing i can do-”said Tugger hiding how bad he actually felt behind a smile, not once had he taken someone on such a lame first date, the smile was more than enough to make Quaxo groan but nod in agreement, he couldn’t resist Tugger especially since it was mostly Quaxo’s fault for not having an impressive first date.  
“Let us get changed!”Said the twins in union before taking one of the bags and running into the small bathroom, “They are really close-”mumbled Quaxo smiling, he was now missing Victoria, he remembered when they were like this too, they were still close but didn’t live together anymore of course. 

“These two share a brain cell!”said Tugger, smirking in amusement before standing up from his armchair and readjusting his belt, Quaxo had noticed him do that before, he always did that after standing up, a warm smile spread across his features as he observed the tall male. “Stare for as long as you want angel!It's free~”cooed Tugger as he closed his eyes leaning against the armchair, his usual smirk on his face and his one hand still on his leather and metallic belt as the other rested in the pocket of his leather jacket messing with his pack of cigarettes. “Oh you are so generous-”muttered Quaxo smirking playfully as he kept observing Tugger, he wanted to avert his gaze but he felt as though that would please Tugger as well so he might as well look at him. “Indeed I am, I have a heart of gold~ But I’m not nearly as generous as an angel ~”said Tugger, still smirking before giving Quaxo a wink, but Quaxo just looked at him and sighed.   
“Why do you call me ‘Angel’?”he asked and Tugger shrugged “You didn’t like my other pet names-”replied the tall blond man and just when Quaxo was about to respond the twins came out of the bathroom. Teazer was now wearing a baggy blouse on top of brown baggy pants borrowed from her brother, Jerrie was wearing a brown crop blouse and dark brown pants. “Shouldn’t you guys dress up fancy again-?”asked Quaxo looking at the two who laughed “No one will see us walk in!”said Teazer smirking and the identical male next to her nodded “Yeah we’ll work in secret, all that ya two ‘ave to do is wait outside of the kitchen door and try not to be seen!”said Jerrie before being dragged outside by his sister.

Tugger and Quaxo easily slip through the receptionist and were now waiting outside of the kitchen door, much to Tugger’s surprise Quaxo was pretty calm “Aren’t you scared~?”purred Tugger teasingly once they reached the door and Quaxo snorted “No?I’m not that much of a wimp you know, i try not to break rules, that doesn’t mean that i can’t”he replied smirking proudly and Tugger laughed quietly before giving him a peck on the cheek “You’re something-”he said smiling and Quaxo smiled softly.

“A’right Jerrie!Come-”said Teazer before motioning her brother to follow, she had now climbed off the hotel’s first floor and was checking the area for any witnesses, they were going to break in the kitchen from outside the hotel. “Comin’!”replied Jerrie before skillfully climbing down as well, in less than a minute both of them were outside the backdoor of a kitchen “Do ya think it locks only from the inside-?”asked Jerrie as he observed the door and Teazer shrugged “Possible-”she said in thought as they two of them came up with the best method to do this without attracting too much attention. “Card right?”asked Teazer and her brother shrugged “It’s the safest option-”he mumbled “Yep always works~”purred Teazer giggling only to have her brother sush her.  
Soon the girl took out what seemed to be like a plastic card, she placed it in between the gap that separated the door from the wall and with a satisfying pop sound the door was open causing the twins to high five and smirk proudly. “I knew we could do it-”mumbled Jerrie smirked and Teazer giggled “We are the best-”she pointed out before opening the lights and closing the back door behind her. Then they opened the other door for Tugger and Quaxo who were patiently waiting outside. “I-It’s been, less than 5 minutes, how?”asked Quaxo looking at his pocket watch surprise painted all over his face. 

“Years of trainin’~”said Teazer proudly “N’ ‘ard trainin’!We broke into all sorts of mansions back in London!”said Jerrie quickly only to have his sister nudge him, he was revealing too much. Despite Teazer being the louder one often giggling or laughing or even talking too much she was great at keeping their secrets unlike Jerrie who was quieter and more careful but had a large mouth and didn’t think as much before he spoke.   
“We never broke into the Jones’ ‘ouse!”said Teazer quickly grinning at Quaxo who shrugged nervously, he wasn’t fond of London’s wealthy families anyway other than is and Plato’s the rest were pretty annoying to him, so he couldn’t care less about who the twins had robbed. “I don’t mind really-”said Quaxo smiling much to Teazer’s and Jerrie’s surprise “Ya aren’t snob enough!’ow did ya survive-?”Asked the female twin playfully nudging Quaxo’s shoulder as Tugger just looked at them and eye rolled “FOOD - we came here for food!”said Tugger loudly, he hated being ignored and he hated how Quaxo would randomly start talking to his friends and forget about him.  
“I am pretty surprised myself-”joked Quaxo looking at Teazer still smiling before glaring at Tugger for a few seconds “Angel stop bonding with my friends we are on a date-!!”yelled Tugger pouting and crossing his arms as he leaned against the kitchen bench. “Ohh a date huh~?” said Teazer chuckling proudly of her friend. “Might as well leave ya two~”she continued before taking Jerrie’s hand and making her way back to the back door. “Ohh right, I didn’t like the last time i spied on Tugger’s date~ my eyes are still traumatized~”purred Jerrie smirking at Tugger who laughed “We aren’t going to do THAT with Quaxo!”protested Tugger with an eye roll. “I surely hope not-”mumbled Quaxo as he realized what Teazer and Jerrie had seen.

“Bye lovebirds~”cooed Teazer as her and her brother excited the kitchen leaving the couple alone.

Tugger's eyes rolled playfully before looking around the kitchen, it was surprisingly empty, though it made sense in a way, this was a small hotel and a really cheap one, it offered meals but it wasn’t anything too fancy, tasty or good. “I had imagined this far better- God I’m sorry Quaxo-”mumbled Tugger as he sighed and jumped to sit on a bench.   
“It’s fine!”said Quaxo smiling at him but Tugger still looked pretty disappointed in himself, he always had amazing first dates, even if the place wasn’t so nice the girls were usually so interested in Tugger that just being himself, smirking and teasing his date would be enough, but him and Quaxo did that all the time. “It’s not, I’m supposed to be good at this, this is the least romantic thing I’ve done-”said the blond male as he avoided the other’s gaze.

Easily Quaxo jumped on the bench too and wrapped his arm around Tugger’s waist, this of course took the older male by surprise as he looked at the other in confusion. “No one’s ever broken into a kitchen for me that’s pretty romantic in my eyes-”said Quaxo with a smile as he hugged Tugger awkwardly. It was the most awkward hug someone had ever given Tugger but he loved it, quickly he hugged back tightly with a smile “So since we’re ignoring our first kiss, can we also ignore our first date?”asked Tugger and Quaxo shrugged, he didn’t care much he was just hungry he didn’t even intend this to be a date. 

“Let’s go make an omelet!Chinese eggs should taste the same and I see many green things, vegetables are always a safe choice in any country-”said Tugger with a chuckle before gently letting go of the other and getting off the bench to start making the omelet. “Let me get the eggs-”said Quaxo but Tugger shook his head quickly “No no you’re hungry I’m taking care of you!”exclaimed Tugger winking before taking out the eggs and starting to cut some of the vegetables he randomly found, he had no idea what he was doing Munkustrap or his father or Demeter or even Bombalurina rarely cooked, Tugger knew how to make pasta and fried eggs these were the two dishes he knew, so a fancy omelet was kind of a challenge. Not to mention how nervous he was. 

“SHIT-!”yelled Tugger as he saw blood coming from his finger “How stupid are you?That’s a butcher’s knife it’s not for avocado-”mumbled Quaxo before eye rolling and walking over to Tugger whose face was white as a sheet, he didn't like the sight of his own blood, the cut wasn't deep though. “Since when do rich kids know about knives?”asked Tugger smirking trying to act calmly before Quaxo handed him a napkin “Press this against your little scratch, and avoid using meat knives to cut vegetables”advised Quaxo with a cocky smirk before picking up a nakiri knife and kept cutting the avocado into smaller pieces “My uncle has taught me how to cook, how to cook properly!”answered the black-haired male the smirk on his face now turning into a soft smile as he remembered the memory, he missed his uncle a lot. “So you don’t have a chef all the time?”asked Tugger and the other laughed.   
“My uncle does, I have my own apartment, I wanted to be more independent!”said Quaxo proudly but Tugger chuckled“I bet your uncle pays for it!That’s not independence”teased Tugger as he leaned against the opposite bench enjoying watching Quaxo’s slim figure cut the vegetables, it was nice to just sit and observe him.   
“I-I prefer to call it partial independence!”said Quaxo defensively, he knew he counted on his money too much and he couldn’t probably last a day without the conveniences or at least the safety net his family’s wealth provided him.

“I’m joking!It took a lot of guts to come with me and if I was wealthy too I’d probably count on it a lot as well!”said Tugger, smiling, but the other had his back turned. “It’s fine, i know i’ve lived a sheltered life”admitted Quaxo with a low chuckle as he continued to make the omelet, he wasn’t a skilled cook actually he had tried but he only knew the theoretical stuff he knew the names of all the knives and silverware and all the cooking supplies but he couldn’t put these to use, he was surprisingly clumsy and messy.   
Tugger walked over peeking at the other who was now cracking the eggs “Angel my dear, is that an egg shell~?”purred Tugger over the other’s shoulder who scoffed “Yes I can fix it though, i’ll do it later!”he said smirking, now that Tugger had noticed how bad he was at this he was never ever ever going to admit it or ask for his help. Heaving a sigh Quaxo cracked another egg half of the egg shell falling into the mix and the short male muttered something under his breath, at that Tugger kissed his cheek and hugged his waist “You’re just tired, I know don’t worry-”said Tugger smirking not wanting to point out the other’s flawed cooking. Gently the taller male took the egg shells out and cracked 3 more eggs perfectly to Quaxo’s surprise. 

Then Quaxo slipped out of Tugger’s hug and placed the vegetables inside as the tall male heated up the stove placing a pan with oil on top of it right before Quaxo poured the mix in. “We’re such an amazing team angel~ life and kitchen partners!”exclaimed Tugger smirking as the other just rolled his eyes trying to hide his smile, he wanted to make a snarky judgy comment but he couldn’t he didn’t mind being partners with Tugger in any way, it was a little too soon to be thinking about that but Quaxo didn’t mind that prospect.   
“Not denying it~”cooed Tugger but Quaxo ignored him once again, silence was a much better answer, he didn’t want to deny it no of course not, but agreeing was also too quick for Quaxo.

When their little meal was done they didn’t bother to take a plate neither of them being in the mood to wash it afterwards so they sat at the bench next to the stove using chopsticks to eat the omelet, Tugger was struggling so much so he started stabbing pieces of the omelet as he kept asking why would anyone want to eat with sticks. On the other hand Quaxo found it rather easy after some time, but tiring too tiring it made him eat slower and at the time he was starving. The taller male was assigned to wash the pan and after the other had placed everything back in it’s place they walked out closing the lights behind them and holding hands.   
“It was a nice first date-”mumbled Quaxo as he held a little tighter on the other’s hand and moved so that he could be next to him.  
“It wasn’t nearly what i had in mind-”mumbled Tugger chuckling awkwardly but Quaxo smiled softly at him, this brought back everything from their little date, the warm food in his mouth Quaxo’s smile and laughter, even the small cut in his finger looking back at it this might have been the best date he’s ever had. It wasn’t the location or even the nice food but the short magician, this is what made this date perfect. “You’re so hard to please, what did you even expect?”asked Quaxo chuckling, by now he felt comfortable to walk by Tugger’s side holding his hand. “Actually i think it was a great date!”exclaimed Tugger giving the other a toothy grin only to receive an eye roll as a response.

They walked back to their room the receptionist was now sleeping on her chair, head laying on the desk as the couple walked by and made their way to their room. After changing into some cleaner clothes, which Quaxo regretted doing as his body didn’t feel that clean at the time, they laid under the covers of their bed Tugger had his one arm around Quaxo and his other one placed behind his head, he yawned finally feeling tired.  
“Angel i can’t sleep-”whispered Tugger after the two had spent some minutes in silence “Aren’t you tired-?”questioned Quaxo who despite having slept so much he could still sleep, “I am, I just can’t sleep …”mumbled the other as he shifted trying to get more comfortable “Hey tell me a fairytale!”asked Tugger grinning, but the black-haired male just laughed “No no Angel I’m serious come on!”asked Tugger again as he started shaking Quaxo’s body gently “God fine fine-”said Quaxo as he tried to shoved Tugger away but his attempts were all in vain.

“I read this great book ba-”   
“No no Quaxo, I want you to make something up!”

Knowing that protesting wouldn’t work when it came to Tugger the other heaved a sigh and after 5 minutes he started telling a story he was making up at the moment, it was simple but at the same time unique and it was enough to make the other snore and drift to sleep rather quickly much to Quaxo’s relief, he had no idea what he was saying. Closing his eyes and moving a little closer to Tugger slowly the younger male fell asleep as well.

A loud knock was heard on the door causing Tugger who quickly shot up to open the door to fall down as he was wrapped around in the blanket, upon seeing that Quaxo sighed and got out from the bathroom a towel wrapped around his waist and wearing his white shirt but it wasn’t buttoned up. “Who is it-?”asked Quaxo nervously as he ignored Tugger who was struggling to free himself from the sheet and the blanket around him.   
“Teazer n’ Jerrie!” replied the now familiar voice of the female twin “Mornin’ ya too!”yelled Jerrie cheerfully as Quaxo opened the door before quickly running back to the bathroom to properly dress himself. “What happened!?”asked Tugger who was now getting up having a sleepy expression on his face, but no words were necessary as soon as he saw Jerrie holding his saxophone Tugger knew all too well what this meant “No no guys I want to sleep-” mumbled the tall musician before laying back on the bed his face pressed against the pillow as he closed his eyes. 

“Ya think yher dear ol’ brother will allow that-?”asked Teazer with amusement in her voice as she raised an eyebrow glancing at Tugger, meanwhile Jerrie had grabbed one of Tugger’s legs and tried to get him off bed. “Don’t care, tell him I’m sick, plus I don't even know how to play the guitar that well-”said Tugger now facing the pillow while he tried to kick Jerrie away from his leg. “Well i won’t be playin’ the drums either now but I’m going to help Jerrie out-!”she said crossing her arms. “Ya might as well go with plan B-”mumbled Jerrie and with that Teazer sat on Tugger’s back and started jumping up and down “WAKE UP-”she yelled.  
“Keep it down others are sleeping-!”said Quaxo glaring at Teazer, he was now wearing striped black and grey dress pants of course his usual white button-up shirt and his woolen black vest. 

“Nah nah ya can’t go out like this!”said Jerrie as he noticed Quaxo’s appearance “London has harmed ya greatly!”exclaimed Teazer with a gasp. The black-haired male examined himself looking for anything off “Well you’re not wearing something that impressive either!”he said huffing. “Angel, I love you but you dress like an old person-”mumbled Tugger who still had Teazer sitting on his back. 

“Operation style up Quaxo starts now-!”announced Jerrie who let go of Tugger’s leg and walked over to the door waiting for Quaxo to follow him “I’ll ‘ave Tugs up in less than 30 minutes is that enough-?”Asked Teazer and received a nod from her brother who dragged Quaxo out of the room.

“I don’t think there’s something wrong with my style-”mumbled Quaxo as he got dragged into Jerrie’s and Teazer’s room by the now overly excited male “It’s not eh unique and colorful enough!”explained Jerrie while he unlocked the door shoving Quaxo inside the room. “I have better clothes at home, you know more ‘colorful’ but not many you see-”attempted to explain Quaxo but the other interrupted him “Yeah yeah i know they don’t match the parties and events hosted by your cycle!Men there are supposed to dress neatly with a black or brown color palette, I know!”said Jerrie, eye rolling as he looked through his own clothes looking for anything he could give Quaxo “Crop sweater?”offered Jerrie smirking, he loved cutting and sewing his own clothes, something he learned from his mom. “D-Do they even sell these-!?”asked Quaxo surprised, he didn’t like shirts or sweaters or blouses or anything that was crop, no. “Nah i make ‘em myself, Bomba n’ Dem should take you shoppin’ by the way, with yher clothes you stand out too much!”mumbled Jerrie before tossing Quaxo a red sports jacket, hesitantly Quaxo put the jacket on, it close to his size, maybe a little too loose due to Jerrie’s more muscular built and broader shoulders. “Looks nice enough, but you’ll go shopping-!”said Jerrie smirking a little before going out waiting for Quaxo to follow which he did.

They were greeted with the other two Tugger yawning and holding his guitar “A’right let’s get going!”announced Teazer grinning widely before leading the way. “What happened to your t-shirt-?”asked Quaxo, smirking as he noticed that Tugger was of course wearing his leather motorcycle jacket but he was now wearing a blood red light sweater “Where did you get the sports jacket~?”cooed Tugger as reply causing the other to huff.

Munkustrap, Alonzo, Demeter and Bombalurina were waiting for them outside of the apartment they were renting. Munkustrap looked at them and sighed “You are late!”he said but as he saw that no one was reacting he looked at his notes “Isn’t it late for a concert-?”asked Quaxo quietly and Tugger chuckled “Oh by concerts we mean that we’re just playing music in the streets -” he replied grinning. “Aye Munk!I want Dem or Bomba to take Quaxo shopping!”yelled Jerrie and Munkustrap hummed and wrote that down.  
“Today Alonzo and Jerrie go to Qianshi for their duet”said Munkustrap as he handed them a hand-drawn english-chinese map of Beijing showing where Qianshi was, along with money and the bus schedule. “Then Bombalurina and Tugger go to Guozijian road!”said Munkustrap as he handed Bombalurina the same as he had handed Alonzo.

“Teazer you will go with Alonzo and Jerrie, usually Dem and I go with Tugger and Bombalurina but now Demeter, would you mind going with Quaxo?”asked Munkustrap, turning to his girlfriend who smiled warmly, “I’d love to!”she said before kissing Munkustrap’s cheek and walking over to stand by Quaxo’s side. “G-Good morning!”greeted her politely the shorter male and Demeter smiled “Morning!”she replied just as politely. 

And with that the 3 groups split, Tugger going with Bombalurina to perform their vocal duet as he played the guitar setting the tune and Munkustrap watched their performance, Alonzo and Jerrie as the only ones that had taken classes to learn their instruments were an amazing team, they did a nice jazz-like duet usually both of them knowing many songs, they earned a lot of money and even more when Teazer was helping by pick-pocketing from the crowd. But going shopping with Demeter started off as the most awkward thing Quaxo had done, it only got worse when they started shopping, Demeter was a fine lady but he was used to buying high quality clothes, better, more expensive ones. But he forced himself to try on some other clothes, it was impressive how good he looked, he could tell the fabric was cheap but on the mirror he liked what he saw, Demeter was indeed really stylish, it makes sense for her to be the group’s stylist.  
They laughed -she even told him some things about Tugger and his childhood which Quaxo planned on remembering until the day he died-, the shopping was amazing, after some time Quaxo felt so nice that the poor clothes didn’t seem nothing compared to his happiness, he was now holding 2 or 3 full shopping bags and Demeter was smiling at him. “So how are you feeling?”she asked cheerfully and Quaxo heaved a happy sigh looking around him in the busy street of Beijing full of people. “Really pleased with the new clothes actually but i am not tossing my old ones!”he said quickly and she nodded “Of course not, i’d never ask you to do that!”she said quickly gasping softly. 

Of course Quaxo kept his elegant and somewhat monochrome style, but he now had two sports jackets one of them having a black and white tattersall pattern and the other being black with red stripes, he also bought a black shirt and two patterned shirts one with paisley at the colors of black,purple and dark blue and the other had a black and white windowpane. They had also been able to exchange Quaxo’s money for Yuan so he was finally spending some money, still he had plenty more to spend. They kept walking and chatting, now being more interested in each other’s company rather than shopping, they reached quieter neighborhoods and streets and were soon a large street with more elegant shops with fewer clients.

“That must be the expensive side of the road-”joked Demeter as she glanced around looking at all the nice shop windows, she loved her style but she was curious about how women felt when wearing expensive dresses. Noticing how interested Demeter was in the new stores Quaxo smiled and took her hand leading her inside one of the stores, it was fairly small but beautiful, each piece inside was unique and there weren’t more than one or two of each clothe, as soon as the two walked inside the 2 costumers looked at them and the worker raised an eyebrow curiously before saying something in Chinese that neither Quaxo nor Demeter understood.   
“Do you speak english?”asked Quaxo nervously, Demeter was too shocked and nervous to speak, she had barely noticed what was Quaxo doing before he entered the store, “Oh you are from England?”asked the woman working there, she was tall and slim, taller than Quaxo and Demeter, she slowly walked over to them “Are you two lost?”she asked smirking a little as she whispered something in Chinese with the two ladies shopping behind her, the two ladies laughed and Quaxo took off the red jacket Jerrie had given him and walked closer to the tall lady.

He didn’t speak Chinese but the snobbish laugh was the same in every language and unlike Demeter he knew just how to deal with it “No not really, we’re here to shop-”said Quaxo smiling at her before taking Demeter’s hand again and leading her to look at some of the clothes at the side of the shop “Quaxo we can’t afford these, what are you doing?A-And the ones we’re looking at aren’t even on sale-”she whispered and the other smiled at her “I can easily afford buying you a gift”he said still smiling softly as he kept looking through the shirts and dresses of the shop. These were the textures and fabrics Quaxo was used to and he had missed this feeling, yet the comfort a crowded loud cheap store offered him was strange but just as nice, if not nicer than this snobbish store.  
“Quaxo you need your money!”said Demeter just as quietly but she was now examining the nice clothes in front of her “At least try them on!And you spend your day helping me out it’s the least i can do for a friend!”he hummed still smiling as he was now focused on the clothes, he remembered when Victoria and him would go shopping for hours, he’d watch her try on those beautiful dresses, spin around the room as he tried to judge the clothes she was wearing, if they were pretty enough for his little sister. He had so many memories of him and Victoria together but shopping was something they both enjoyed doing.   
“Why don’t you try this on?”asked Quaxo trying to give Demeter some confidence as he held up a sheath woolden dark blue dress, “It goes with a shirt underneath of course so take this shirt just so we can see how it looks!”added Quaxo smiling before handing Demeter a plain white shirt, which she hesitantly took. “Go on”said the male as Demeter slowly walked in the dressing room.

It had been 15 minutes and Quaxo was getting worried, but Demeter showed up, she looked really nice, she look at herself in the mirror examining everything but she was amazed by how beautiful it was, it didn’t suit her more casual and even ‘rock’ style, no she felt like a lady, she felt special just to have this dress around her body. It was a beautiful sensation and she was now wishing Munkustrap could be with her, to maybe impress him or to show him that she was able to look feminine in the right clothing. She felt bad for not wearing dresses much, she just felt too exposed and vulnerable to anyone while she was wearing a dress. She must have owned 2 or even 3 dresses in her whole life and she wore them only the occasional dates she’d go with her boyfriend.   
“You look lovely!”said Quaxo, smiling at her, even the other 2 remaining ladies in the store were looking at Demeter, she had short golden blond hair which showed her beautiful cleavage and neck perfectly.

“Pick something else!We have hours until the others are done!”said the short male happily as he took a seat at the ottomans the store had. With her new confidence Demeter picked up several dresses she had previously spotted, a white long dress, a nice red velvet sheath dress, a swing green one, many colors and fabrics in her arms as she walked in and out of the fitting room. After she was out all eyes would be on her, her golden short locks, her beautiful legs and waist, sure she wasn’t a model but she was now confident and that made her more beautiful than ever.

After she had tried on anything she liked she let out a tired sigh wearing her regular clothes and walking out sitting next to Quaxo “Which one are you buying?”he asked her and she sighed and shook her head “I’m not much for dresses-”she breathed out and Quaxo looked really confused, it wasn’t the fact that she didn’t like dresses every woman had their thing, it was how happy Demetater looked while she was wearing a dress. “How come?”he asked, breaking the awkward silence as he stood up gently taking her hand and walking outside with her, he felt as though it’d be best for them to be alone. “It’s nothing I just don’t like them-”she said looking away as she started walking away from the store, quickly the male followed her “You seemed rather happy in them”pointed out Quaxo smirking a little despite trying his best to hide it.   
“They are fine in the store, but not outside-”she admitted heaving a sigh. “What do you mean?”asked Quaxo, being just as confused as he was before and if not more confused.  
“I mean that a dress, well a dress is, too showing, it shows my legs my arms my cleavage, I’m exposed and I don’t like this-”she replied nervously as Quaxo chuckled softly but awkwardly, “I loved them but i feel exposed and like I’m not myself-”she continued as she heaved a deep sigh.

“These weren’t right for you then, there are many types styles patterns and fabrics, did you feel pretty in the dresses?”asked Quaxo only to receive a hesitant nod from Demeter, she felt exposed sure but she liked the idea of having a nice dress, the ones she had were well plain and she wore them on her more formal dates, but they were all summer dresses. “Let’s look around some more!”said Quaxo. They tried a few more stores until Demeter had finally found it, it was an expensive silk, forest green and mint green striped house dress (google what a house dress looks like if you want to picture it), much to Quaxo’s surprise. There were dresses worn by housewives around the house but Demeter liked it so it didn’t matter to him and she looked beautiful in it anyway. “I feel comfortable wearing it, you know, not too much attractive or ladylike but still beautiful-”she explained nervously as she handed the dress to Quaxo in order for him to pay for it “And again thank you for doing this”she thanked him, previously she had tried to make Quaxo not to pay for the dress but he had already decided that she was going to get her a gift, he insisted and he said that he was going to get her a good dress anyway so might as well choose the one she wanted.

It had been hours since they had parted with the others and they only noticed it when they were done, both having had fun. “Hey Quaxo, don’t tell anyone about the dress you bought me alright?”she asked and the male nodded smiling “Sure, but why?”he asked her and she chuckled nervously “Edm- er Munkustrap is taking me out on a date, not now in a week or so but still I’m thinking of wearing it, I know I will stand out a lot but I want him to see me in a nice outfit for once-”she said chuckling nervously, she had no doubt that he loved her and that he loved her for her pants and shirts and personality, that dresses didn’t matter to him, but she still wanted to try and look really attractive for him just once.  
At that Quaxo smiled and nodded “Of course, but you will tell me all the details of your date once it’s over!”he said chuckling “Obviously you and Bomba will be the first ones to hear everything!”she replied, smiling at him.

When Quaxo escorted the woman back to her apartment they thanked each other and he left for his hotel which luckily was close enough cause his legs were killing him, on his way he thought of ways to fit all of his clothes in the small bag he had with him, he should have taken something bigger. Upon reaching the hotel he greeted the receptionist with a smile and she returned the smile, she was really polite and Quaxo felt bad for the twins tricking her. He finally made it to his room and unlocked the door only to notice it was empty, he was expecting to see Tugger but the tall blond male was nowhere to be found, shrugging it off though Quaxo placed the bags on the floor and took off Jerrie’ jacket gently placing it on the armchair he’d have to return this eventually.

Only now did Quaxo notice how empty everything was without Tugger, he was with Tugger’s friends, Tugger’s band he was with Tugger himself all the time but now he felt more alone than ever before, suddenly all the doubts flooded his head once again. “W-what have I done-?”he breathed out running a hand through his messy black hair.   
He of course didn’t doubt Tugger in any way, he liked him and he was the kindest person Quaxo had ever met, but still what had he done. All alone in China, this felt so strange, he was alone in London sure but he knew London, the language, the places and he had his uncle whom Quaxo always knew where to find since he followed a strict routine. But now he was alone in a foreign country “What am I doing!?”asked Quaxo standing up suddenly as he watched the new cheap fashionable clothes from the inside of the shopping bags and the neatly folded expensive clothes on his own bag.  
It was a perfect comparison of his old and new life, in 6 days he had changed everything, linen to synthetic, that’s when he felt confused and sick and worried being too lost in his thoughts, he tried to recall his old life and compare it to the past few days, make up his mind and choose. He hadn’t noticed that his body was starting to shake and how he was pulling on his black hair-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, feedback, comments and kudos are more than appreciated so yes! I hope you like this chapter! ✨✨✨


	4. Journey to the past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quaxo is still having a mental breakdown, doubts, worries and memories flooding in his mind, but a pair of notorious twins comes to his aid.  
> As they try to comfort the magician though Quaxo will learn that him and the twins have more things in common than he thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //I updated this sooner cuz i wanted to see if the world will like this chapter or not! Anyway i hope you'll enjoy it.
> 
> IF you have read this far thank you so much, your suport is literally the world to me!

“Quaxo!Ya inside-?”yelled Jerrie from the other side of the door as his sister was trying to pick on the lock, they didn’t have their ‘equipment’ with them so it was kind of harder to enter the apartment “Are ya sure ya saw him inside-?”asked Jerrie looking down at Teazer who huffed “Yeah i told ya, he walked in like, 10 minutes ago!”she said confidently as she glared at her brother who nodded quickly “Yeah yeah I believe ya!”he said defensively, they had never argued and they never planned on doing so.

“Tugger’s never gonna talk to us if he dies-”said Jerie thinking of the worst scenario but his sister rolled her eyes“He’s not dead-”she mumbled as she was now again focused on the lock. “I ‘ope ‘e’s not”mumbled Jerrie as he looked for other ways to break into the hotel room “GOT IT!”yelled Teazer as she pushed the door open, they saw Quaxo alive but not well, he was shaking on his chair as he looked at his luggage and the shopping bags “Oh good ya bought somethin’!”said Jerrie playfully but Quaxo didn’t react much. “Shit ‘e’s not doin’ good-”muttered Teazer before walking over and soothingly rubbing his back “Aye, Quaxo ya a’right buddy?”she asked smiling.   
As soon as Quaxo felt someone touched him he blinked a few times and only then noticed the twins, his breathing was heavy and he sighed “Yes I’m fine I’m sorry if i caused any trouble!”said Quaxo, forcing a nice but distant smile, just like the ones he had on his face back in London. 

“Ya sure aren’t fine!C’mon tell us what’s up!”said Teazer before sitting on the bed smirking. Jerrie closed the door behind him and sat on the armchair comfortably placing his legs on the small table next to it. Quaxo sat up and walked inside the bathroom locking the door behind him “We ‘ave no respect for privacy Quaxo!”yelled Teazer giggling and Jerrie nodded “Don’t make us break into the bathroom!”added Jerrie smirking, that thankfully earned a chuckle from Quaxo “I’ll be out in a second-”breathed out the black-haired male. He did walk out soon after he had washed his face calming himself down. 

“So, what happened-?”asked Teazer raising an eyebrow who was now lying comfortably on the bed grinning at Quaxo. “I-I’m just nervous about this, I have nothing, I only have Tugger I am with Tugger’s friends following Tugger’s dream, and now that he’s gone I kind of freaked out. I mean ... What have I done? I’m so far away from home-”mumbled Quaxo as he curled up on the small desk chair he was previously sitting on. “We know it’s ‘ard… “said Teazer “Especially since ya seem to like London!”added Jerrie “I don’t though-”breathed out Quaxo looking down   
“Then what’s the matter?”asked the red-haired male in confusion “It was secure, but now what if you two didn’t walk in? I’d be all alone until Tugger returned, I rely on him too much and that’s not safe especially since I don’t know him and I don’t want to hold him back!”explained Quaxo, he didn't know if he made any sense but he felt nice to get this all out. “Ya need to relax, firstly we’re not just Tugger’s friends!”said Teazer smirking at Quaxo as her brother nodded quickly “Yeah we’re yher friends too!”he said, giving Quaxo a similar smirk to the one of his sister’s. 

“Still even if i have you two and even Munkustrap and Demeter, you are all closer to Tugger a-and I’m still too far away from home-”mumbled Quaxo nervously “A home ya weren’t that fond of, especially after yher sister left!”pointed out Jerrie proudly. “Aren’t ya ‘appy?”asked Teazer with a concerned expression on her face.

“I am!I’m happier than I’ve ever been for the past 2 years, but it feels so wrong and now that Tugger and i apart i can see that clearly-”

“What’s so wrong-?”asked Teazer, raising an eyebrow and looking over at her brother who just shrugged.

“This, me running away with strangers so far away from home!”

“We need to get London out of ya~”purred Jerrie eye rolling “So ya say ya’ve been to dinner parties did those guests look ‘appy to ya?Sure there were some that were pleased but ‘ave ya seen any of them crack an actual smile?”asked Teazer now moving to sit at the edge of the bed so she could have a better look at Quaxo’s face.   
“How do you even know how these people felt?”asked Quaxo eye rolling trying not to see Teazer’s point, sure they smiled but they were kind of fake smiles, he hadn’t seen any of them burst into laughter after hearing a joke, just quiet giggles upon hearing gossip or chuckles whenever something ‘funny’ happened. Most of them weren’t in love, they were arranged marriages and Quaxo’s parents that were in love went through hell just cause his father wasn’t as rich, only Bustopher supported them fully. Anyway Quaxo felt a little better now especially since the twins had called themselves Quaxo’s friends, he felt safer now.

“Duh we’ve been to thousand of those snobbish events-”admitted Teazer giggling as if it was the most obvious thing, but Quaxo’s expression was one of utter and total confusion “I’m Jo Clinton, ya know Charles and Stephanie Clinton, gingers, rich jerks-”said Teazer “DON’T forget to add superficial!”yelled Jerrie with a chuckle and his sister laughed.   
Much to their surprise Quaxo started laughing loudly tears rolling down his eyes from laughing too hard and when he was able to regain his breathe.  
“No no her and her brother died back in 1941 i remember their funeral, a huge event, especially considering the constant bombings in London during WWII but rather pleasant for a funeral, this is when my uncle started disliking the Clintons, the whole thing looked as a whole excuse for them to recieve pity and show off their wealth-”explained Quaxo as he tried to vaguely recall the memories of the funeral he was 9 years old at the time and he felt bad for the dead children.

“They didn’t die-”mumbled Jerrie eye rolling, he was shit of this crap everyone thinking that he was dead was tiring after some point. “Yeah they did, I honestly think their parents killed them-”said Quaxo eye rolling, he had grown to dislike Clinton due to everything his uncle told him about the red-haired rich man.  
“Ya sure know the gossip don’t ya~?”Purred Teazer giggling before giving her brother a wink who eye rolled but understood what she meant “Oh please tell us what ‘appened next!”asked Jerrie forcing a smile, he didn’t like his sister’s idea that much but he was going to go along.

“Later on two impostors showed up, they resembled the kids though or at least that’s what they said I don’t know myself, anyway yes their parents were forced to take them in to maintain their reputation, but the kids were never around the house that much so I don’t know why they showed up in the first place they weren’t taking advantage of the Clinton’s wealth-”mumbled Quaxo, he was never interested in the certain gossip, he found disrespectful to take the identity of a couple of dead kids.

“Now tell us about the kids, anything ya know~”purred Jerrie as he moved to sit next to Teazer. “I never met them before their death sadly, they never hung out with anyone in the social events i wasn't that social and popular either, and my uncle and Clinton aren’t that close, anyway I’ve heard that they were identical both red hair, brown eyes, freckles, you know the whole package. But they were so 'messy' and there were rumors about the Clintons stealing so they got invited in less and less parties, that is until the death of their kids and their popularity rose again-”said Quaxo as he tried to recall all the gossip he had heard around the parties and with every memory that came back his image of London go ruined gradually. 

“N’ what were their names-?”asked Teazer leaning against her brother as she giggled, and her brother grinned devilishly. Then Quaxo turned to them chuckling “Oh Mungo Jerry and Jo Clinton!”he replied like it was obvious, but then his jaw dropped open as he noticed how much Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer suited the description. “‘appens every time!”said Jerrie as he playfully rolled his eyes, still smirking “Never gets old!”said his sister quickly and they laughed. All Quaxo was able to say was “No-”as he kept staring.  
The death of two innocent kids was something that had been haunting him, even if they misbehaved and caused trouble their whole story was enough to make young Quaxo fear for himself and his little sister they were a rich pair of twins as well, Victoria didn’t think too much of it but Quaxo as a child was so freaked out at the thought that this could have been him and his sister. 

“They died-”said Quaxo laughing “Do I look dead-?”asked Jerrie raising an eyebrow “Ask us something that only Jo and Mungo would know!”challenged him Teazer and Quaxo tried to remember something that happened that both him and the actual Clinton kids would know. “Fine!In 1938 at Joseph Acker’s dinner party something happened, what was it?”he asked as he recalled the memory, it was something that hadn’t gone out in public and no one ever spoke about it not wanting to cause disliking to the Ackers so only people that were present would know about it and it wasn’t a really interesting gossip.  
“I think they served swordfish there-”mumbled Jerrie licking his lips, he loved seafood and the only thing he liked about dinner parties was the food, at that Quaxo shrugged, he didn’t remember. “OH Acker’s grandmother appeared naked n’ 30 minutes late for dinner but everyone ignored it in order not to insult ‘er cause she ‘ad a mental disease or somethin’!”yelled Teazer recalling the memory, she remembered feeling bad about the poor old lady but no one spoke about it out of respect towards the family.

With a few more tests and questions Quaxo was left speechless “How-?”he asked and the twins shrugged “We just ran away one day to go with our mom-”said Jerrie casually “Stephanie?But she stayed behind-”mumbled Quaxo in confusion “Ew Stephanie isn’t our mom!”said Teazer pretending to vomit and her brother nodded quickly “Yeah, she is the one that gave birth to us!”he said which confused Quaxo even more “Jenny is the one that took care of us, so we call ‘er mom!”explained Teazer but that confused the poor magician even more “Who’s jenny?”he asked.   
“She was one of the cooks at the Clinton ‘ouse, but also our mother figure, then she got fired and after one year she went to Scotland with dad, not Charles, Skimble!”explained Jerrie “You haven’t seen her since, I’m so sorry!”said Quaxo a frown upon his face. “No!”yelled Teazer with a huff. “Do you mind explaining!?”asked Quaxo, he was so confused now, so much information for him to take in and the twins weren’t properly explaining everything.

“So we met Jenny one day at the ‘ouse, she was really kind n’ caring towards any kid, she gave food to the ‘omeless kids n’ taught them anythin’ she could that would ‘elp them get a job when they grew up- after she found out that Teazer n’ I have been stealin’ she scolded us. I loved ‘ow she cared 'bout us as people n’ tried to raise us properly while other workers were just polite n’ praised us 'oping to get a promotion or a raise, while Jenny didn’t care' bout that, she cared 'bout us growing up to be proper adults… ”started Jerrie a soft smile on his face, he loved Jenny so much, Teazer did too but she was probably closer to Skimble. 

✨ Flashback to make things easier ✨

(HUMAN names will be used to make it more accurate and to symbolize how much they’ve changed since then)

“Mungo Mungo!”yelled a young girl at the age of 10 as she woke her twin brother up who opened his eyes slowly “W-what?You’re not Jenny -”he mumbled sleepily, the twins were almost never apart but at the time Mungo Jerry had a terrible fever so he spend the whole day in bed locked in his large bedroom, not even Jo was allowed in, the two parents of course didn’t care they just didn’t want the flu or the fever or whatever to spread in the rest members of the family. The only one that walked in was Jenny, who was like the twins’ babysitter, just a woman the parents had around the house to deal with their troublesome kids. “Exactly!”yelled Jo and took her brother’s hand literally dragging him out of bed “Come on get up, our parents will fire her if we don’t do something!”she said and Mungo didn’t need anything more than that to force himself to stand up wrapping his arm around his sister’s shoulders and with her support they walked out of the luxurious bedroom.

The two looked identical, as if they were the same person especially now since Jo was giving herself haircuts, the parents wanted her to have long beautiful braids like a young girl but she wanted the same haircut as her brother so she kept cutting her hair this short boyish type Mungo had.  
“W-Where is jenny?”asked Mungo holding back a cough as soon as they found their parents, the tall red-haired man looked at his kids glaring at Jo “What did i tell you about bringing Mungo out of his room while he’s sick!?”he asked and the girl crossed her arms, she was far more rebellious than her brother “He gets to have a say in this!”she said firmly and their mother rolled her eyes “No he doesn’t and neither do you!So drop him and we’ll have someone take him back to his room and go take a bath immediately!”said Charles Clinton was he backed away, he had important meetings to go to he wouldn’t miss it just cause his stupid son decided to get a fever. 

“I just have a fever, not the plague-”mumbled Mungo huffing, he hated being away from his sister and laying in the bed all day especially now that Jenny was gone “Look Jenny talked to homeless kids, helped them out and even brought some of them inside the house during a bombing!We won’t have her ruin our reputation-”explained Stephanie as she heaved a sigh   
“She was perfect-!”protested Jo, her brother simply nodding as he felt his throat sore whenever he spoke.   
“Mungo go back to your room, Jo take a bath since you touched him and Jenny won’t come back, face it and leave before any of us gets sick-”muttered Charles as he walked away from the room holding today’s paper. His kids were just a disgrace to him, disobedient little devils and to think that he was excited about having twins, dressing them in matching clothes and them looking cute, these two were nowhere near cute, they were stealing little pests that ruined the Clinton’s name.   
They caused trouble and every maid and every worker inside the house had at least once yelled a ‘Now which was which kid!?’ in frustration before leaving it at that not wanting to get in trouble with Mr Clinton

Mungo gave his sister a look and they both smirked for a few seconds, they knew they had the same idea, they were going to say goodbye to Jenny “2 or 3 max-”mouthed Jo and her brother nodded quickly, soon they both rushed to different directions and from the windows they climbed down reaching the road.They had done it many times, they lived in a neoclassical building which made climbing fairly easy after the first few tries.

“Jenny!”squealed both of the kids as they ran behind the woman who quickly turned around to face them a large smile across her face as she dropped her suitcase and rushed to them “Mungo Jerry what are you doing outside!You’re sick, go back-”she breathed out as she held the two kids who were hugging her tightly. How she loved these two troublemakers, they made all of her days unique and interesting as she tried to get them out of trouble and ‘correct’ their ways, but she loved them for what they were. They were like the children she never had with her husband, they were in love they really were but it just didn’t happen for some reason.  
“We couldn’t let you leave like this!”said Jo huffing and Jenny chuckled “I know, but you have to go back, Jerrie is burning and you will get in serious trouble young lady-”said Jenny and pulled away from the hug despite how much it pained her, they never had a proper goodbye but she didn’t want the twins to get in trouble, she knew what kind of jerks the Clinton’s were and if it weren’t for the twins she would have quitted her job long ago.

Before the kids had the chance to protest Jenny started walking away “Go back inside-”she yelled tears running down her eyes, she didn’t want to be so cold with the twins and if it weren’t Mungo being sick she would have stayed with them longer. “We love you Jenny!”yelled Mungo and Jo nodded quickly “We will miss you-!”said the girl but the woman didn’t reply, the twins knew well why, typical of Jenny to care about them too much. Ever since Mungo felt bad for having a fever.  
They secretly went back inside the house, Jo taking the bath and Mungo returning to bed both feeling sad and empty. Later on they were grounded for disagreeing with their parents, they weren’t allowed to hang out and only saw each other during breakfast, lunch and dinner, but that was enough for the two kids to communicate with no words of course but with their eyes and facial expressions. They kind of had a code, it wasn’t official but they knew what each other meant, at least the basics.

Mungo was taking his piano lesson with his teacher next to him demonstrating how to play one classical piece, he wasn’t paying attention, he instead was focused on the clock on top of the fireplace. Jo was at the eastern dining room of the house, miles away from Mungo but she too had her eyes on the clock as she learned ‘table manners’.  
The clock struck 12:00 and Mungo threw up on the piano and on his teacher’s lap causing him to back away in disgust.  
The clock struck 12:00 and Jo sipped the burning hot tea on her mother who was teaching her, Stephanie screamed as the tea burned her legs, she slapped Jo on the cheek making the girl drop the teapot at the ground.

The teacher wasn’t freaked out enough so Mungo squinted and dropped his head on the keyboards of the piano laying on his vomit, it was gross but he had to take things far to make the teacher leave. That did the trick the teacher gasped as Mungo grinned goofily, the teacher politely looked at the time “I-I have to go, I’m sorry M-Mr Clinton-”apologized the teacher while stuttering and left quietly in order not to attract any attention.

Stephanie couldn’t believe this “Gosh I’m sorry!”apologized Jo with exaggerated hand movements which knocked down one of the cups staining the linen tablecloth at that Stephanie gasped and Jo giggled “I’m sure it’s not that big of a deal~”she said and took the edge of the tablecloth pulling it towards her pretending to look at the stain. All the porcelain cups, plates and cookies were now on the ground broken and the remaining tea was spilled on Stephanie’s white dress. This earned Jo another slap “Y-You!Gah!”yelled Stephanie before walking off.

The twins met up at the attic, this was their usual spot; their parents never entered the dusty attic and usually even forgot about it. “Your cheek is red-”said Mungo as he noticed Jo’s cheek with concern in his voice “Yours is covered with vomit!”she said and the both started laughing before they hugged each other. They were close, they were best friends, partners in crime, dance partners whenever it was needed, they were a notorious couple and after spending so many days apart they were finally relieved to talk normally. “So how many things do we have?”asked Jo breaking the hug and looking over at their pile of stolen goods, money, jewels, plates, silverware, trinkets.  
“Enough to do whatever we want~”exclaimed Mungo happily and his sister nodded, smirking widely. “So I’m assuming we’re going to Scotland?”she asked and he nodded “You read my mind~”he purred and Jo giggled  
“Always~”

They spent the following weeks planning their escape, the best way was to start a tiny fire when their parents were away, it would attract attention so all the staff of the house thus leaving the twins enough time to run away. And they did so they started a fire at their precious attic after they had placed all of their stolen goods in their luggage along with a spare change of clothes, they didn’t have Jenny’s address but they knew they’d find her. So they ran out of their neoclassical house of childhood memories and traumas, both of them sure that if they didn’t have each other they would have been broken by their snobbish jerky parents.

They walked to the railways station and started looking around confused, the railway was full of anxious people running around, it was intimidating, everyone was taller and bigger than the two kids and for a moment they felt utterly lost, that until a red-haired man with a kind face bended down and looked at the twins “May I help you?”he offered with a smile, the twins looked at each other nervously, if they said their surnames they’d surely have to return home. “We, we’re fine!”said Mungo confidently and his sister nodded “Yes perfectly fine!”she added and the man chuckled softly. “I work here, it’s my last day I’m leaving to go to back to Scotland due to the war!”explained the nice man “The trains for the kids have already left, I can escort you back to your house and wait until the next train in two days!”he said politely but the twins had no idea what he was talking about.

Upon noticing the confused faces of the kids the man chuckled “There are trains that take kids to safer places in the English countryside due to the bombings!”explained the man and Jo huffed “Well we’re not here for that!” she said her brother nodding “What are you here for then?”asked the man with a smile “We’re going to find o-our, mom!”said Jo confidently crossing her arms “Yeah!In Scotland!”exclaimed Mungo, calling Jenny their mom was much safer and easier, if they said Jenny the man would ask more questions.  
“Can you at least tell me your names-?”asked the man and the kids looked at each other but kept their mouths shut “I will help you get train tickets-”he offered and that the kids nodded, Mungo and Jo weren’t that common sure but there’s no way someone would think of the Clinton twins upon hearing the names  
“I’m Mungo and this is my sister Jo-”said the red-haired boy grinning proudly.  
“I’m Skimbleshanks!”said the man smiling at the twins, he knew about them from his wife, he felt foolish for not recognizing them sooner actually he had heard so many things about the kids that he was sure he could spot them.

Y-you are Jenny’s husband!?”asked Jo happily, she had heard Jenny mention Skimble and it was a unique name. “Indeed I am, I’ve heard so much about you!”exclaimed Skimble happily before standing up and looking around “Come with me-”he offered with a smile as he started walking “P-Please don’t take us home!”said Mungo looking at the tall man who chuckled “I promise i won’t now come!”he said.

Skimble sat with the kids at a nearby small cafe and bought them a cup of cocoa, he tried to make the kids return to their house despite knowing how bad it was at the Clinton’s but the kids refused and insisted on seeing Jenny.  
“I’ll take you two with me and pay from the train tickets, only if you promise to listen to Jenny and I once we reach Scotland and if you promise to donate all of the things you’ve stolen to the first church we see!AND no more stealing-”said Skimble firmly and the twins had to agree heaving a deep sigh feeling extremely guilty for all the things they had stolen, but the man gave them a warm smile.

✨ END of the flashback ✨

“N’ ‘e took us to Scotland!That’s where we developed our accents!”said Teazer smirking and her brother nodded “But we can easily avoid doing the accent as you can see!”said Jerrie now going back to the British he did to trick the receptionist “It’s not Sco’ish accent though, it’s more like cockney-”mumbled Teazer in thought and her brother shrugged “We also do German accent but we’re not that good~”she purred playfully as Quaxo was left speechless.   
“Anyway, we returned to London after 6 years in Scotland livin’ with mom n’ dad we also ‘ad stopped stealin’!” said Jerrie proudly as he stretched the arm holes of his vest. "Mom n' Dad forced us to go back to our ol' 'ouse, which we did but we didn't like it n' the Clintons didn't like us-!" said Teazer eye rolling, she hated the Clintons "They even planned on marryin' Teazer to some random guy!" yelled Jerrie frantically.   
They still remembered how they reacted when they heard the news, this was the last time they ever saw their biological parents, they said 'Jo' was an item and that they might as well use it, but before Teazer could react Jerrie had already run up to Charles Clinton punching him. Jerrie was never a fighter but no one insulted his sister, anyway he broke Charles' nose earning a scream from Stephanie and Teazer laughed loudly before taking his hand and running away with him as fast as they could.

"So I punched Charles n' we ran away! We stayed on the streets for s'me days waitin' for my knuckles to heal, we didn't want mom n' dad thinkin' I got into a fight -"continued Jerrie chuckling quietly "We went back n' told mom n' dad what 'ad 'appended, minus the punch, so we often slept at their 'ouse in London or in random 'ouses we'd break into~" explained Teazer giggling, she was clearly fond of the crazy memories she had with her brother.

By now Quaxo had once again remembered how toxic his old social circle could be, every doubt, every worry these people caused to him and to many other kids, if it weren’t for his uncle, sister and friend Quaxo would have been a wreck. Hearing this story made him re-visit some of his childhood memories as well as every emotion and thought he felt at the least day on the train, everything that led him here now, so he smiled and chuckled “Well, it’s convincing, sorry for thinking you were dead!”apologized Quaxo nervously and the twins shrugged “It’s kind of cool in a way-”said Teazer but her brother shook his head “Nah i think it gets borin’-”he mumbled but they laughed and shrugged it off.  
“Are ya feelin’ any better now-?”asked Jerrie, raising an eyebrow at his friend who nodded “Much better, thank you!”he replied happily, he was probably closer with the twins than anyone else -other than Tugger- much to Quaxo’s surprise, he always thought that him and Munkustrap would make great friends.

“Now are ya ready to get rid o’ all this bullshit that fancy people ‘ave planted in yher ‘ead-?”asked Teazer as she got up glancing at her brother who smirked and nodded “H-How?”asked Quaxo in confusion “We’ll burn yher past!”said the twins in union and for one moment Quaxo felt worried that they’d burn down his house, but he was able to cross that plan out. “What reminds ya o’ London-?”asked Jerrie, raising an eyebrow and the black-haired male took his small bag, he had War and Peace, he wouldn’t burn that, clothes, maybe that would work. “I have many clothes!BUT i am keeping some of them!”he said as the twins snatched the bag away from him “Ok well let us burn at least one o’ the shirts -” mumbled Teazer chuckling at the amount of white shirts Quaxo had with him “Gloves we’re so burnin’ these-”said Jerrie as he tossed the gloves out of the bag and soon one of the white shirts was on the floor on top of the gloves “B-But these gloves were expensive!”protested Quaxo and the two looked at him “They’re not even warm-”said Teazer eye rolling playfully.  
“Are you two pyromaniacs-?”asked Quaxo and the twins just shrugged “Destroying fancy things that remind you of somethin’ ya don’t like is surprisingly nice!”exclaimed Teazer happily before tossing a small manual on top of the shirt “Why did ya even ‘ave a ‘Table manners’ manual?Even Teazer n’ i remember those-”said Jerrie chuckling as he noticed the manual Teazer had tossed “I-I always study it before dinner-”admitted Quaxo and even he couldn’t deny that this was pretty stuck up and stupid. “Rip it!”said Teazer as she tossed the bag on the ground.

“That’s wrong!”said Quaxo rolled his eyes, he didn’t see any point in this “It’s just a manual filled with things ya already know!”said the red-haired male as he heaved a sigh and tossed Quaxo the manual who looked at it hesitantly “These are holdin’ ya back!This manual is what the Ackers n’ the Clintons n’ any rich ass family in London wants ya to be-!”said Teazer grinning and Quaxo just looked at her “They want me to become a manual-?”he asked, raising an eyebrow and the twins sighed.   
“Besides, I don’t want to forget and ignore my past, it's who I am!”continued Quaxo and the twins nodded at that “Exactly!”yelled Jerrie grinning and Teazer nodded.

“Yeah don’t forget yher past Jerrie n’ I didn’t do that!”   
“Just get rid of the stereotypes that ‘ave been holdin’ ya back from enjoyin’ this!”   
“Ya can’t freak out whenever Tug’s not around to distract ya!”  
“Ya aren’t in London anymore, ya aren’t with people that will judge ya!”  
“On the contrary!We admire yher courage!”  
“N’ we couldn’t be ‘appier for ya n’ Tugs!”  
“So!Fuck the law, fuck stereotypes, fuck London, fuck the law n’ relax!”  
“Ya were so cool when ya were talking to Demeter!Where is that confidence!?”  
“Fine!”yelled Quaxo as he was tired of the two of them talking so fast, it made thinking harder, but they were right, he was happy when he let go, when he was with Tugger and when he was with them, happier than he’d ever been and the stereotypes he grew up with were ruining his mood, it was pointless especially since he was far away now.

At that Quaxo ripped apart the thin cover of the small manual and chuckled as he kept destroying the rest of it, shredding it down to small confetti-like pieces. “It’s just a paper!”exclaimed Jerrie happily “Don’t let it control ya!”added Teazer cheerfully as she watched her friend snap at the small manual.   
Then Quaxo grabbed a pair of scissors and destroyed his thin gloves smiling happily and as he went for the shrit Jerrie stood in front of him “Ya got the point don’t ruin yher shirts!”he said chuckling before picking the shirt up and shoving it back in his bag. “It’ll get wrinkled-”mumbled Quaxo who quickly took out his shirt and folded it neatly.

They spend the rest of their time in Quaxo’s room where they chatted and obviously gossiped about some of the families they both knew Quaxo updating them on the latest gossip of London and the twins were more than interested to mock these people with Quaxo, which they did. They did funny impressions of certain people, discussed some of the most popular ‘theories’ and mocked some of their believes, of course in everything they were saying Quaxo’s family was excluded, his uncle was respected and popular but he had character and honor, he was one of the least stereotypical people in London and that was all thanks to his sister who went against what was expected of her and married a man of a lower social class. If it weren’t for that the Jones wouldn’t be any different than the Clintons.

Tugger walked into the room smirking when it was late afternoon Bombalurina next to him, she was smiling and her cheeks were red “I just had too much wine~”explained Bomba giggling and Tugger chuckled. Quaxo couldn’t tell if they were drunk or not but he just shrugged it off, they could be half-drunk?He didn’t know much about drinking, he didn’t like alcohol that much and neither did his sister, Plato would occasionally drink but he wasn’t a fan either.  
“What have you been up to Angel~?”purred Tugger still smirking as Bombalurina leaned next to him, he felt so awkward and bad at that moment what would Quaxo think?His ex leaning on him after they had been out for hours. “Nothing much!”replied Quaxo as he glanced at the twins and the three of them chuckled much to Tugger’s confusion “I’m not cheating on you with Bomba but are you cheating on me with Jerrie and Teazer-?”asked Tugger playfully as Bombalurina started laughing next to him.   
Jerrie sat up from the bed and patted Tugger’s shoulder “Yeah we ‘ad an awesome threesome!”yelled Teazer and Jerrie chuckled “Shhh Tugs will get all jealous~”exclaimed Jerrie playfully and Teazer laughed falling on the bed.

“Alright-”said Tugger who was too tired to deal with Jerrie’s and Teazer’s crap. Then the twins looked at Quaxo smirking at him before walking off to their own room.  
“Hey Angel, Bomba is well, drunk, kind of, I don’t think it’s legal in China and she doesn’t have the keys to her apartment, the others weren’t answering a-”   
“Tugger she can spend the night here!”said Quaxo, eye rolling as Tugger heaved a relieved sigh and helped his friend walk over to the bed where Bombalurina sat there, her back against the bedpost as Tugger placed an extra pillow behind her.

“Tugger, I’m not some jealous, possessive partner, i trust you!There’s no need to be so anxious when it comes to hanging out with your friend!”said Quaxo eye rolling, he hated it when he was compared to Tugger’s previous affairs, it was sweet how much Tugger cared but he found it disrespectful. “Sorry I just, well, I don’t want to ruin things with you, I really don’t and i can’t help but worry-”mumbled Tugger looking down, he was really worried about Quaxo. Upon hearing that the short male walked over to Tugger hugging his waist tightly, he intended to speak but he didn’t know what to say, he couldn’t find the words, so a hug would be much better and it was. Tugger melted into the hug of the shorter male humming softly as he turned around and gave him a quick peck on the lips.  
“You mean so much to me Quaxo, it’s weird but it’s true-”mumbled Tugger nervously only to receive another hug and to have Quaxo nuzzle against the crook of his neck. Tugger knew what that meant, he didn’t mind Quaxo not talking that much during such moments he found it rather adorable and loved it, especially since he himself was anxious about being too physical and overwhelming the other.

They spend their night chatting in the bathroom quietly leaving Bombalurina napping on their and at night Tugger slept in between his ex-girlfriend and his new boyfriend, but he couldn’t sleep, he felt too awkward. The fact that both Quaxo and Bombalurina -who wasn’t as drunk anymore she was just too tired to return to her apartment- didn’t mind it made Tugger furious and even more anxious. Bomba and Quaxo had even talked on where they should all sleep and they chose Tugger to sleep in between just cause he was a blanket-hogger, neither of them seemed to care about Tugger having dated both of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HOPE you liked this chapter, i loved writing this, since it's like about Jerrie and Teazer and I love them.
> 
> Kudos, feedback and comments are welcomed and appreciated BUT just having you as a reader ia honestly enough for me✨  
> Stay safe and enjoy the rest of your day!


	5. Total eclipse of the heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> // Firstly if you haven't noticed all ready all the names of the chapters are song titles since i lack the proper imagination.
> 
> Tugger, Quaxo and Bombalurina spend the night together, but it wasn't such a pleasant night for Tugger sleeping between his first girlfriend and his curent boyfriend. He's worried that he'll end up hurting Quaxo's feelings, or that either of them will get jealous, but eventually he relaxes and is himself. Sadly though things don't turn out as good as Tugger hoped, he is experiencing an awkward moment between him and his best friend for the first time.  
> Things will only turn worse when due to homophobia Quaxo isn't able to comfort Tugger when he expresses his worries, as soon as Quaxo was able to fully overcome everything that held him back the couple is faced with a new problem, a problem that neither Quaxo or Tugger can solve.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //My summaries s u c c
> 
> ANYWAY thanks for reading this far, i hope you'll enjoy this chapter!It hasn't been through actual editing yet, i want to focus on writing future chapters while updating weekly, so a few mistakes. Also English isn't my first language and i have dyslexia so editing is super hard for me!

Bombalurina was the first to wake up so she stretched and went to the bathroom to wash her face, she had a slight headache but she had dealt with worse hangovers before so it didn’t bother her. As soon as she walked out of the small bathroom glanced at the couple smiling, she was so happy for her friend during the time they were out Tugger kept talking about Quaxo he seemed so happy and excited to be in a relationship with the short magician. Bomba herself didn’t feel that impressed with the younger boy yet but she trusted Tugger and whatever the boy was doing, it surely made Tugger happier and more excited than Bomba has ever seen him and that’s all she cared about.  
She wanted to go meet up with her sister but she didn’t want to risk waking the sleeping couple out and it was somewhat adorable to watch them. Tugger having the blanket wrapped around his legs and his back facing Quaxo who was hugging Tugger’s waist tightly “Tugger was never into cuddling-”she said to herself quietly with a smile before stretching, she would go get them a cup of coffee. As Quietly as possible the woman with the fiery red hair left the room taking Tugger’s key and her wallet with her. 

When she returned she was pleased to find both Quaxo and Tugger still sleeping, gently she placed the two cups of coffee on the desk before taking a sip from her own. The smell of coffee was more than enough to wake Tugger up, he hadn't drunk coffee since his day in Quaxo's kupe so he had missed the hot bitter beverage. He stood up earning a groan from Quaxo who rolled over and changed his side wanting to sleep more "sorry my angel ~" purred Tugger sleepily but Quaxo ignored him, so the tall male ran over and grabbed his coffee taking a large sip, it wasn't as hot as Tugger liked but it woke him up.  
"Bombs you're a lifesaver! " breathed out Tugger happily as he drank his coffee "Hey did you get me two cups -?" asked Tugger, whispering and Bomba chuckled. 

"The other one is for your boyfriend" replied Bombalurina smirking playfully at her friend who looked at Quaxo's sleeping figure "He doesn't like coffee, only tea and cocoa" said Tugger a soft smile on his face as he still looked at Quaxo, he did look like an angel and the musician was feeling extremely lucky to have Quaxo as a partner. Bombalurina shrugged "I mean I tried to do something nice for you~”she purred leaning closer to Tugger who was now sitting on top of the desk. “You did something nice for me, but not for Quaxo-”exclaimed Tugger teasingly as he leaned closer to her as well their foreheads touching and both of them smirking testing each other to see which one would feel awkward to pull away first.

Quaxo stood up and glanced at them before rolling his eyes and going back to sleep and immediately Tugger moved away from Bombalurina running to the bed -slipping his coffee in the process- and laying on top of Quaxo hugging him tightly “IT’S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!!”he yelled hysterically, he felt so bad and he tried to ignore Bombalurina’s giggle and proud smirk. “Tugger you slow-witted bore! get off me-”said Quaxo his voice muffled since his face was pressed against the pillow as he squirmed to get Tugger off him “I’m not cheating on you I swear!!”said Tugger as he slowly got off Quaxo but he was still hugging him tightly. Quaxo panted heavily, Tugger was much taller and heavier and he had taken poor Quaxo by surprise, he didn’t expect him to jump on top of him.  
“Did i ever say you were cheating on me?I just find your actions boring, that's why I eye rolled!” explained Quaxo as he rolled his eyes once again before yawning and sitting at the edge of the bed now thankfully out of Tugger’s hug.

Bombalurina was sitting on the desk observing the two, it was nice to see Tugger care so much for someone, even if he was never able to care for her that much, it pained her at the time to see how casual, not-romantic and ignorant Tugger could be, one moment he was hugging her and the next he was off with Jerrie and Teazer. But as soon as she got tired of this her romantic feelings disappeared and they broke up. It still pained her though, she didn’t like him that way anymore but Quaxo comes and in a week he is able to bring out a totally new and different side of Tugger one that Bombalurina and many girls after her longed for.  
Quaxo stood up and picked up a towel ready to go take his morning shower “Hey why do you take a shower every morning!?”asked Tugger playfully as he leaned against the bathroom door smirking seductively at Quaxo kind of forgetting Bombalurina was there “It’s called being ‘clean’ you should consider it-”replied the short magician a smirk on his face as Tugger smirked “No need to keep yourself clean for me~ I’d love your body no matter what~”purred Tugger winking at the other who just stared at him “Well unlike you, I like my body when it’s clean and I’d also really appreciate it if you took a shower once in a while too-”said Quaxo huffing, his face had kind of heated up after Tugger’s reply but he tried to ignore that.  
“I don’t shower, I take baths every 2 days but i ran out of shampoo and I’m not using the cheap hotel shampoo brands-”explained Tugger as he faked a snobbish look and glanced down at Quaxo who eye rolled “You need special shampoo-?”he asked in surprise and even disbelief but Tugger was a really curious person so weird things made perfect sense when it came to Tugger. “Obviously~How else will i maintain my glorious hair~?”he purred but Quaxo shrugged “Sure fair enough, but if you don’t wash yourself soon or you won’t be able to maintain the luxury of sleeping next to me, I’m seriously going to get a new room if you keep stinking like that-”scoffed Quaxo, he actually didn’t mind Tugger’s scent that much he didn’t stink, his T-Shirts did, but still it was disturbing to think that he was hugging someone who hadn’t taken a bath in at least 7 days. 

“You don’t seem to mind when you’re cuddling me~”teased him Tugger and Bombalurina, who was still third-wheeling/watching them. Quaxo huffed, he hated it when he was intimate and touchy in his sleep he couldn’t help it and he didn’t even remember it which made things worse. Seeing that the short male had no snarky reply Tugger smirked proudly over his victory before he got pushed away from the door and before he could protest Quaxo had walked inside slamming the door in Tugger’s face. Normally the musician would have been overly worried that he had hurted Quaxo’s feelings but he could feel Quaxo smirking just as proudly as he had a few seconds ago from the other side of the door.  
“I know you’re smirking~”cooed Tugger as he heard Quaxo chuckling “You’re such a creepy give me some privacy!”replied playfully the other male and now the only sound that could be heard from the bathroom was the water running.

“Tugs, what you have is really nice-”said Bombalurina softly before getting off the desk and smiling. “Thanks!Every relationship is nice though-”joked Tugger casually, he didn’t want to be too lovey-dovey in front of his ex, he didn’t want her to feel like she wasn’t enough for him, generally he wanted to act casual about the whole thing to Bomba. Bombalurina chuckled, she knew what Tugger was doing and she was grateful but her and Tugger have always had an honest relationship, him not being honest about his feelings wasn’t something she liked. Now for the first time in many years an awkward silence fell between the two friends and the only sound filling the room was the running water from the bathroom. 

“I should get going!Get ready for our duet you know-”said Bombalurina chuckling nervously before getting off the table and making her way to the door “Y-Yeah!Bye!”said Tugger grinning as he tried to ignore and even forget how awkward things were between them and he watched his friend leave. He heaved a sigh before taking the coffee that Bomba had gotten for Quaxo and taking a large sip as he sat on the bed.

Tugger kept thinking and analyzing what had just happened with his friend replaying their interactions in his mind, he had been afraid that Quaxo would get jealous that he almost forgot about Bomba’s feelings, he knew she was happy for him but was she also sad at the same time?  
“Are you alright-?”asked Quaxo looking at Tugger worriedly as he walked out of the bathroom a towel around him and made his way to get a change of clothes, he was expecting Tugger to make a comment about his current ‘outfit’ but instead the tall male just looked at the ground and sigh “Yeah I’m fine!”replied Tugger cheerfully smiling but he wasn’t facing Quaxo yet. “We will have a talk about this once I change!”informed Quaxo before walking back into the bathroom.  
Now he was wearing one of his new shirts (the black and white one) along with a pair or black pants and black suspenders so he walked out. “So what happened?”asked Quaxo and sat next to Tugger, he felt so selfish for only worrying about his own problems while neglecting Tugger’s. 

“It’s probably nothing!”replied Tugger chuckling and kissed the other’s cheek, he tried to keep a positive mind, sweep every problem and worry he had under the carpet until it needed to be dealt with, he might be worrying over nothing. “Are you sure?You know you can talk to me about anything-”mumbled Quaxo as he leaned against him and wrapped his hands around Tugger’s waist. “Vicky tells me I’m a good listener!”added Quaxo trying to make the other open up. But he just chuckled and smiled at Quaxo before taking another sip from his coffee “You’re purrrfect in every way my kitten~”Purred Tugger. At that Quaxo cringed and eye rolled “Why did you make a cat pun-?”he asked, raising an eyebrow but Tugger just shrugged “Dunno!”

Taking in the moment Tugger enjoyed the feeling of Quaxo hugging him, it was a nice change, so he relaxed, he had nothing to worry about. “J-Just know that you can talk to me -”mumbled Quaxo nervously as he nuzzled Tugger’s side, he wasn’t good at being caring to anyone but his sister, this was so new to him. “I know that Quaxo, but it’s probably nothing!”replied the other male “You can do some magic to cheer me up~”suggested Tugger his usual smirk on his face and the other rolled his eyes playfully “If it’s going to get you out of depression then sure-”mumbled Quaxo before kissing his cheek gently and letting go off him.  
“You’re unusual intimate today~”pointed out Tugger happily as he observed Quaxo shuffling a deck of cards “I’m just trying to be affectionate since you seem more tolerant than usual-”said Quaxo dryly but he was unable to hide the smirk on his face much to Tugger’s delight, how he loved the small mischievous proud smirk of the short magician. “Pick a card-”mumbled Quaxo as he closed his eyes and spread the cards out for Tugger to pick one and he did and then the shorter male handed him the cards “Shuffle them, mess with them do whatever you want!”said Quaxo, smiling his eyes still closed. “Sure thing Angel, I’ll try not to make this too hard for ya though~”purred Tugger playfully and Quaxo then took out Tugger’s card out of his sleeve leaving Tugger in awe.

After that Tugger went back to being his usual cheerful self of course it took some more tricks from Quaxo to fully ‘recover’ his usual happy attitude but Quaxo would do anything if it meant that he’d cheer up the blond musician, Tugger was the best person Quaxo had ever met. “Angel let’s go eat breakfast before we meet with the others!”said Tugger, smiling as he stood up and stretched, he hated to cut Quaxo’s magic show short but he could use some breakfast before performing. Taking his hand the shorter male led the other out of the room and into a small cafe-like place he had spotted the other day, it was right next to the hotel and it looked pretty cheap and of average if not low quality but Quaxo had stopped minding these things.  
They sat at a table and Quaxo placed his pocket watch in front of Tugger “I don’t want you running late for work-”explained Quaxo as he heaved a sigh and looked away nervously “Sweet little Angel~”purred Tugger happily but instead of his toothy smirk he was now smiling softly, he couldn’t believe a person like Quaxo could even be real, he was so smart, elegant, Tugger felt blessed to even having seen someone as the shorter male. He had dozed off staring into Quaxo’s eyes that were now focused on reading the menu, at that moment the musician felt blessed to have such a wonderful sight in front of him, his little angel was the definition, the personification, the splitting image of beauty.

Quaxo noticed the other’s curious eyes on him, but he didn’t look back, he knew he’d blush and feel awkward, maybe kiss him since he wouldn’t be able to respond with words, so he focused his eyes on the menu with a small smirk on his face. He felt flattered with how sweet Tugger was, how complementing his gaze was it gave Quaxo a comforting amount of confidence. Unable to find the words but not wanting to ignore the other the black-haired male looked up and gave Tugger a small smile hesitantly, he wish he could speak he could thank him or complement him?He actually had no idea how to react, a smile seemed nice, he was just hoping that it wouldn’t offend Tugger or come off as ‘cold’ and distant, he had the reputation of being vague and aloof, even Tugger had pointed it out to him. But he didn’t want that all the time, he wanted Tugger to be able to see through his aloof demeanor. 

“I like it, don't worry-!”said Tugger grinning at him, he indeed liked it, he liked how sometimes Quaxo wasn’t able to express himself through words, it forced the shorter male to be more intimate and show more emotion than usual and Tugger loved that he felt special not only for understanding Quaxo’s simple smile but for being able to bring out that side of him, to make him unable to speak and to let his guard down around the world to give Tugger a hug or a kiss or a smile.

“You are the Americans right?What will you order-?”asked a sweet waitress with a chinese accent. Quaxo rolled his eyes, he didn’t like it when people confused England with America but he just sighed and appreciated the fact that they had sent someone that spoke English to take their order. They ordered and as soon as Quaxo noticed the time he sighed “You should hurry up and eat you will be late!”mumbled Quaxo nervously breaking the silence, he wanted to talk to him a little more before he left. “Hey relax!Munk won’t kill me and my duet with Bomba, well it’s with Bomba she’s my best friend!”said Tugger grinning now having forgotten most of his previous doubts.  
“Still, running late is not acceptable and not right to your partner!”continued Quaxo as he huffed, he hated it when people were late, he got delayed too sometimes of course and he was never on time but he tried to be, unlike Tugger who didn’t seem to mind. “Don’t be so anxious over everything Angel, you aren’t going to enjoy your life much!” said Tugger, shrugging casually much to Quaxo’s annoyance but also amusement, Tugger was annoyingly amusing. “So what are your plans for today-?”asked Tugger, wanting to keep the conversation flowing as the two waited for their breakfast. “Stay in the room read my book until you come home and then I can tag along with whatever you have planned-”mumbled Quaxo nervously as he looked at his plate, he didn’t want to do this, he hated depending on Tugger but everyone except him had to work so he’d just wait for him. He was actually used to doing just that, sitting alone and reading, if he was able to do it every day for 2 years he would easily do it again for Tugger, so he looked up at him and smiled.

Tugger laughed and eye rolled “No depression and loneliness when you’re with me!You will come with me and see my duet, or go with Jerrie, Teazer and Lonz!”he said smiling and before Quaxo could protest Tugger shook his head “Nooo!!If you refuse I’ll just leave Bomba and keep you company!”he said quickly giving Quaxo his signature toothy grin, but the shorter male just rolled his eyes “I can easily spend some hours alone Tugger and you barely have a proper job quitting is not an option-”said Quaxo firmly, he wouldn’t let Tugger act stupidly when it came to his work, he know how caring he was and Quaxo didn’t plan on letting his naive and polite personality get him in trouble.  
“Playing music in the streets isn’t really my job and it’s not my priority, it’s hard to give you a better life and making sure you’re doing a-”muttered Tugger and he would have kept going if Quaxo hadn’t move his chair and next to Tugger to give him a tight hug, that mad Tugger keep quiet, they ignored the glares and curious glances from the people in the cafe. Quaxo didn’t care, he didn’t like it but he didn’t mind it seemed insignificant compared to Tugger’s happiness and feelings. They stayed in silence for several minutes and they could hear the waitress whispering something with the cook.

“I’m sorry our kitchen is closed, I will have to ask you to leave!”said the waitress and Tugger glared at her clenching his fist, but upon realizing that he wanted to make a scene Quaxo stood up and sighed before walking over to the door Tugger following behind him and when they reached it the tall musician wrapped his arm around the other’s shoulders bringing him closer. And with that they flashed the waitress two proud smirks and walked out of the homophobic cafe.  
The blond man was fearring return to the previous topic, Quaxo would protest and he’d end up spending the day with him which some moments ago would seem like a dream but he was still worried about Bomba, sure he had planned on ignoring these thoughts but it’s easier said than done, he just didn’t want to change his routine. As if knowing all of Tugger’s worries, Quaxo stepped on his tiptoes, kissing his cheek and smiling “Tugs, I’ll be fine, I’ll even go with the others you don’t have to take care of me all day!”he joked and at that Tugger felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders.  
“You’re really magical-”said Tugger as he forced Quaxo to face him and they looked into each other’s side, soon though the shorter male blushed causing Tugger to chuckle proudly, it was a rare sight to see him blush. 

“You support me, sure, but I’m here to support you as well, t-that’s what couples do-”said Quaxo and as he said the last part he looked away and Tugger cupped his cheeks giving him a quick peck on the lips “W-We’re in public!”hissed Quaxo as he glanced around checking for anyone that might have noticed them, luckily the street was pretty empty other than some cars so no one had seen them. “Yes my dear Angel, we’re a couple and we will support each other!”he said, giving him a tight hug.

It didn’t take long for Quaxo to relax against the hug and nuzzle against Tugger, he closed his eyes and he felt as if he was home, not London, a new type of home, probably what Jerrie and Teazer had mentioned. Anyway he felt a new feeling of safety in the other’s arms, his breathing and heartbeat relaxed as he embraced everything, Tugger’s warmth, his breathing, his body heat, Tugger’s presence was so soothing and calm, none of his fears could reach him.  
This was all Tugger needed, this a hug, to have Quaxo in his arms and to take in the feeling of holding someone so perfect, now his worries seemed meaningless and far gone, he thought he was relaxed but this hug meant so much more to him than anything he had felt previously. Of course every time he had Quaxo near him was special to him, but still, this one seemed far more helpful and important than anything. He felt safe, now everything that made him worried or stressed was gone and all that mattered was keeping the shorter male close to him. 

They stood there, awkwardly all of the gazes and glares not affecting them in the slightest, this simple hug put an end to all of their worries. “W-we should get going-”breathed out Quaxo without pulling away from the hug and he could sense that Tugger was pouting, then he looked up at him as if asking him to pull away first, he couldn’t break the hug he didn’t have the strength so he was asking Tugger who slowly moved away a slightly pained expression on his face. As they made their way to the others’ apartment to meet up with them Quaxo held Tugger’s hand and moved closer to him with a smile “You know Straps will choke once his sees this-”pointed out Tugger smirking but the shorter shrugged “I need this”he admitted simply but they both knew that Tugger needed this just as much and if not more, the physical support of his loved one, yes loved one, it was too soon and Tugger had accepted his role as a fool who rushed in, but he couldn’t help it.

Just as they turned right to meet up with their friends Tugger let go of his hand giving an apologizing look to Quaxo whose reply was an understanding nod, he didn’t know what was going on but he trusted Tugger. They were going to see Bombalurina and as much as Tugger loved Quaxo more than anything he didn’t want to risk his relationship with his best friend, he knew that Quaxo trusted him and that meant a lot to him, he felt the safety to focus on Bombalurina. They could rely on each other without even talking directly, that was new and exciting for the both of them, they communicated on a new level based on mutual trust, respect and even love. 

As soon as they were spotted by Munkustrap the couple could feel his glare “You are so late you have already missed the first bus!”he said quickly as Quaxo and Tugger approached the group hesitantly “Straps relax!We just enjoyed our breakfast~”Lied Tugger with a goofy smirk on his face, he didn’t plan on telling his brother that he got kicked out of a cafe for being a homosexual, no he didn’t want to receive a lecture about being ‘discreet’. Quaxo who caught up to Tugger’s lie just nodded in agreement causing the older male to sigh. “Anyway, Quaxo what will you be doing-?”asked Munkustrap and the short magician took a quick glance at Teazer and Jerrie who luckily understood what he meant “‘e’ll c’me with us!”announced Teazer happily causing Quaxo and Tugger to heave a relieved sigh, Quaxo didn’t have to awkwardly ask and Tugger wouldn’t upset his best friend.

“Nice to spend sometime around you Quaxo-”said Alonzo with a soft smile on his face as he glanced at the shorter black haired male who smiled and nodded nervously “I-I guess, thank you-”mumbled Quaxo clearly not expecting such a reaction from Alonzo. “A’right let’s get going!”yelled Jerrie grabbing Quaxo’s arm and starting to make his way to the bus, Teazer and Alonzo of course followed the two. 

Tugger was pleased to see Quaxo smiling, he was getting closer to the twins and Tugger was glad that he was getting along with his friends. 

\------------------------------------------

“So we kind o’ ‘ave this jazzy number with Lonzy, actually one o’ us starts playin’, the other follows n’ we just go on randomly-”explained Jerrie looking down at Quaxo who nodded quickly “N’ i steal~”whispered Rumpleteazer with a short giggle only to have her brother nudge her and Alonzo chuckle and eye roll. “I tried to stop it but we could use the extra money-”mumbled Alonzo with a guilty look on his face, as Quaxo just looked at him curiously, he knew that Alonzo was Munkustrap’s best friend so shouldn’t he be more ‘serious’ and ‘strict’ when it came to such things. “Luckily Munk trusts Lonz enough to keep Jerrie n’ I in check!” said Teazer playfully glancing at Alonzo who chuckled once again “I understand that stealing is bad, I’m normally against it, but we do need the money and i have set a yuan limit so we don’t take much from one person-”explained Alonzo smiling softly at Quaxo who nodded.  
“BUT don’t tell Munk!”added Alonzo nervously, at first he wasn’t on board with the idea but Teazer never took too much and they needed the extra money, he didn’t want to betray Munk’s trust and first he felt guilty but he couldn’t really stop the twins, he might as well agree but make a few terms. “It’s fine, I won’t!”said Quaxo with a smile and Jerrie ruffled his hair “I trust ‘im!”said the red-haired male and Alonzo shrugged.

Soon they were off the bus and stood in the station of a busy street full of people walking by at a fast pace. Chuckling Jerrie and Alonzo started setting everything up and in less than 5 minutes everything was set and Alonzo was tuning his bass to make sure it was right, a small crowd was already gathering around the two musicians taking curious glances at the two. It didn’t take long for music to fill the streets, it was a beautiful jazz melody that was completely in sync with everything happening around, the pace of the busy people walking by, the way the people curiously looked at them, the various bikes that crossed the street, Quaxo was amazed at first. After some time had passed Teazer started doing her job again, but Quaxo didn’t notice it at first, it took him some minutes to realize that the red-haired female was no longer standing beside him. Heaving a sigh the short male sat at the ground waiting.

He was feeling somewhat homesick again, but he didn’t mind, it was nostalgic but it wasn’t a bad feeling, it had a warmth within it this time the few good memories he had from London were not feeling with him a nice homey feeling instead of the previous loneliness. Quaxo felt happy, accepting every sad thought and turning it into something positive that kept him company until Alonzo and Jerrie were done.

\-------------------------------------------------------------

Tugger’s ride on the bus was awkward, Demeter and Munkustrap seemed to be doing fine, same with Bomba, maybe it was all in his head. His brother and his girlfriend chatted casually about their breakfast, probably, Tugger couldn't pay too much attention and Bombalurina was leaning against the door of the bus looking outside the window in a chill manner, maybe there was no problem with them. At that thought Tugger smiled slightly but he still felt somewhat anxious.

All of his worries came true as he started playing his guitar, it didn’t feel the same, he started singing and soon Bombalurina joined in the song too, the guitar still kept it’s usual steady beat, the song sounded the same as usual but it felt different. Bombalurina would eventually move closer to Tugger, lean against him, play with his hair, wrap her arms around his torso, his waist, even mess with his guitar a little bit as he sang, that always drew attention. Now though she wasn’t as touchy and when she did touch him he felt awkward as hell, something he had never felt when he was being touched especially by Bombalurina.  
His childhood friend, his first girlfriend, his most serious relationship and his best friend. They were always close no matter what, but now it was as if a huge wall had been built between them. 

He even accidentally bumped her sides with his guitar, this had never happened, they had chemistry, they were in sync they had even practiced their moves, how could this happen?  
Of course the money was less today, they always did raise a fewer money than the other two but at least they were having fun, now even an office job would seem better in Tugger’s eyes than this hell he had just gone through.  
The ride back to the hotel of course was silent, by now not even Demeter and Munkustrap were talking as they sensed that something was wrong, they didn’t ask though which is something that both of their little siblings appreciated. At least now they wouldn’t have to face their feelings.

\------------------------------------------------

Tugger unlocked the door to his hotel room, dropped his guitar and gave Quaxo -who was sitting on the bed reading a book- a tired smile before laying on the bed next to him. The shorter male opened his mouth to ask but decided against it, instead he put his book down and lied next to him, he was thinking of hugging him but he knew that he didn’t like cuddling sometimes so he just laid there offering some sort of support. This earned a chuckle out of Tugger who wrapped his arm around Quaxo and the two were now quietly laying, Quaxo on top of Tugger’s arm, as they stared at the dirty ceiling around him.  
They found comfort in each other’s sadness, Quaxo has stopped feeling guilty or plainly happy but these two feelings were replaced with the first wave of homesickness, but he didn’t mind, Tugger was overly worried about his relationship with Bombalurina, he didn’t know what to do, but he always knew what to do when it came to relationships, he felt lost.

Nothing, this was their comfort activity, they knew that no words would cheer the other up, no actions, nothing, they were having a bad day they should just accept it and the only thing that made them feel safe was this, the intimate silence between them. The great silence that no words could feel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //THANK YOU SO MUCH for reading this far!I really want to believe that i have improved and that you keep liking this story as much as you did when you first started reading it OR even more which is even better.  
> I'm sorry if chapters are boring or if i always try to find a problem BUT in my defense I'm trying to make everything reallistic, like even nowdays gay couples struggle, imagine how hard it was back then!
> 
> LASTLY Kudos, comments and feedback are welcomed and appreciated but if you can't do these or don't want to well, just knowing that you're viewing my story makes me glad. 
> 
> BYE!


	6. I need some sleep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> BRUHHH idk what to write!  
> Now trying to get used to the hard routine of balancing their relationship, work and as well as their new troubles the couple finally finds peace, especially since things with Bombalurina seem to be improving. That is until something sparks her complicated emotions once again. This stresses out Tugger even more, he has a hard time balancing all these negative emotions and isn't good at opening up. But Quaxo knows just the way to make him feel better.  
> They also find a phone and we get introduced to Munk's daughter~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //LOOK at me updating so soon!I hope you're proud of me!  
> Thanks for reading up to this chapter, it means a lot!  
> ANYWAY with this chapter i want to make an announcement kind of, I really want to make this 'medieval/fantasy' AU fanfic for Cats, I have some ideas and such but i would like to discuss it with someone and maybe have a co-author or two!So if anyone is interested you can comment or preferably DM me on:  
> Instagram: pier_r_re  
> Discord: Pierrre#1626  
> Quotev: Eggboyo7

That’s how days went by, the band had booked an official concert but it was only one so street music was all they could do. Tugger and Quaxo left at morning each going a separate way and to Tugger’s relief things with him and Bombalurina had restored back to normal, he couldn’t tell what had upset her exactly but it seemed to be something temporary and things were almost back to normal.  
“You looked gorgeous Tugger~”teased Bombalurina as Tugger was placing his guitar back in its case and they were about to wait for Munkustrap and Demeter so that they could all return to the hotel. “That’s no surprise I always look gorgeous~”replied Tugger, a cheesy grin on his face as he glanced at his friend who smirked but rolled her eyes playfully “Indeed you are~”she cooed and the other chuckled playfully. They were joking like that again, teasing each other, things seemed ok between them and Tugger could finally start fully enjoying Quaxo again without having troubling thoughts or worries.

It didn’t take long for Demeter and Munkustrap to return, they were holding hands just like they always did and approached Tugger and Bomba “What took ya two so long!?”whined Bombalurina as she glanced at the couple and crossed her arms “Sorry we just got carried away in a bookstore!”apologized the woman with the golden hair, a chuckle escaped his lips as Munkustrap nodded nervously “Yes, sorry for our delay!” he continued as he let go of Demeter’s hand and looked through a paper bag he was holding, a proud smile on his face. “But I’ve got something for you Tugs-”

Now Tugger was eagerly looking inside the bag but much to his disappointment all his brother took out was a yellow and red book ‘Rebecca’, noticing the confused expression on Tugger Munkustrap smiled “Demeter and I, we had a nice ‘book-date’ when we were at your age reading this book i thought that you and Quaxo would enjoy it!”explained Munkustrap with a soft smile as his girlfriend nodded excitedly “It’s kind of a Gothic novel and we found a copy in english!”she said smiling at Tugger, sure she got annoyed by Tugger’s antics but Quaxo seemed right for him and Tugger was like a little brother to her, she cared about him. “We know how anxious you were about asking him on a date, the book is a good chance-!”exclaimed Munkustrap.  
Tugger was left speechless at first but then he took the book in his hands and hugged the couple tightly, sincere happiness painted all over his face. “Thank you!”he said and the other two chuckled, at that Bombalurina though had a bitter smile on her face. She knew she didn’t like him but she couldn’t stand that someone else, that some stranger made her best friend so happy without doing anything.

“Let’s hurry back to the hotel!” exclaimed Tugger, still holding the yellow book tightly in his arms as he rushed his way to the bus station, he was so eager to show his boyfriend the book, to cuddle and read it with him for endless hours to come, especially now that his relationship with Bombalurina was improving. Smiling at his little brother Munkustrap let out an amused chuckle and kissed Demeter’s cheek “Your idea was wonderful, as usual-”he breathed out and the blond woman giggled blushing a little. “He brings out the best in Tugger.”she said simply and her boyfriend nodded “Yea I’m surprised!”he exclaimed as they started walking with Bombalurina next to them, the bitter smile was still on her face, but the couple didn’t seem to notice as they were looking through the book they had bought for themselves ‘The tales of Edgar Alan Poe’. 

“Promise me you won’t get scared while reading this~”teased her Munkustrap, but the tone of his voice was so gentle and soft that Demeter smiled and kissed his cheek “On the last horror book we read we you were the one that wanted the lights on~”she replied and that made the taller male hold her closely and kiss her cheek. “I did it for you!”he lied and she giggled bopping his nose playfully. They were a couple in love, it was clear, everyone could tell how deeply they cared for each other.

Bombalurina groaned quietly and moved on ahead, normally her and Tugger would chat while their siblings flirted by no no she was losing her best friend to some stranger, so she was alone, it was a new feeling of loneliness, one she had never felt before.“I’m such a third-wheel…”she breathed out quietly as she tried to sort out the confusing feelings and thoughts she had. What should she do?Should she say something? “I’m not jealous-”she mumbled to herself as she heaved a long sigh and noticed Tugger looking back at her. “Bombs are you ok-?”he asked her, raising a confused eyebrow.  
Then the red-haired woman rolled her eyes but forced a smile, she thought it looked happy but Tugger could tell the bitterness and sorrow the smile hid “I’m fine!”she replied and Tugger just nodded nervously and turned back to his book. Should he say something?They never really argued, they did but everything was clear and she yelled, arguments were more certain, but now Tugger couldn’t tell what was wrong with his friend and if he had done something to upset her.

Neither of them knew how to react so they just kept quiet and walked to the bus, now the previous feeling of awkwardness had returned once again.

-

It was a pleasant surprise to see Tugger make his way to the hotel earlier than himself, Quaxo smiled happily waved goodbye to Alonzo and the twins before rushing to hug Tugger’s waist, seeing that Tugger had been starting to cheer up Quaxo was trying his best to shower him with love as much as he could to maintain the happy feelings. “Hey Angel-”greeted him Tugger happily as soon as he felt the other’s arms around him, he heaved a long relaxed sigh when he felt the magician’s touch. But Quaxo noticed that Tugger’s tone wasn’t as cheerful as usually, heck the tall musician wasn’t even grinning or smirking for once.   
“Are you alright?”he asked him looking up into his hazel eyes, but Tugger avoided looking back into the bright blue eyes of Quaxo, he’d melt into his gaze, he’d admit everything or want to kiss him. “I’m fine!”replied Tugger grinning much to Quaxo’s disappointment, the shorter male heaved a sigh and stood on his tiptoes giving Tugger a peck on the cheek “We don’t have to talk about it-”he breathed out soothingly and the tall musician nodded, a chuckle escaping his lips. “Thank you…”he said with a smile.

Tugger felt blessed by Quaxo, in every way, to have Quaxo near him, to have met him, to date him, even to love such a wonderful person, the words he spoke were almost always just what Tugger needed to hear. The couple walked back to their room, Jerrie and Teazer were about to go take them for a walk but they sensed the mood and quickly turned away. 

"Why are these two always so depressed -?" joked Jerrie as he raised an eyebrow at his sister who shrugged "Beats me -" she mumbled, smirking a little. 

Soon Munkustrap, Demeter and Bombalurina reached the small apartment they were temporarily renting, when they walked inside they were greeted with the familiar scent of tomato sauce “Oh don’t tell me Lonz’s cooking!”exclaimed Demeter happily as she kissed her boyfriend’s cheek before rushing into the kitchen only to find Alonzo on top of the oven. “Hey!How was rehearsal?”asked Alonzo with a smile but he didn’t look at his friend since he was serving the potatoes. “What are you making-?”asked Demeter cheerfully, she was starving, she had skipped breakfast and Alonzo’s cooking was the best. He always made several dishes from Spain in order to share his culture with his friends. He was half-spanish but he was extremely proud of his Spanish roots.  
“It’s patatas bravas, it’s pretty simple, we didn’t have many things in our apartment!”he exclaimed as he held out a huge bowl with potatoes, tomato sauce and parsley. “Thanks Lonz!”said Munkustrap, a grateful, soft, smile on his face as he thanked his friend, cooking was usually his job so coming home to find a tasty warm meal was a pleasant surprise.   
“You know you don’t have to do everything yourself-”joked Alonzo, a small smirk on his face, as he passed by Munkustrap on his way to the living room.

The small kitchen had no table so the four of them always ate at the coffee table, as soon as Demeter ate her first bite she smiled warmly “Lonzo it’s wonderful!”she exclaimed, but everyone’s expression changed as well as soon as they started eating the food. It was tasty, warm, it gave off this homey feeling and Alonzo was glad to share his culture with his friends. But he couldn’t help but notice Bombalurina’s troubled expression, Demeter and Munkustrap were quickly finished with their food, took the book and giggled as they went to their bedroom. 

“They are in love-”mumbled Alonzo happily, Demeter was one of the few people who could make Munkustrap relax so easily, Alonzo and Tugger were the other two but a lady’s company was different. “They got this new book-”huffed Bombalurina in annoyance as she rolled her eyes, she was happy for her sister but she had been third-wheeling for her sister and boyfriend, now her best friend was in love as well. “They even bought one for Tugger and this Quacky guy of his-”she grumbled before forcefully placing her plate on the table and folding her arms, now she was leaning against the couch. “I think his name is Quaxo-”joked Alonzo as he glanced at her, but Bomba chuckled bitterly “You already like him don’t you-?”she asked looking away.  
“I mean, I haven’t met him”said Alonzo heaving a sigh as he stood up to take all the plates back to the kitchen, Bombalurina stared at him at first before looking away in annoyance, she didn’t have something against Quaxo, she just didn’t want to feel left out, like she wasn’t enough for her best friend.  
“Enough about Quaxo, let’s talk about you!”said Alonzo with a warm, soft smile on his face while he sat next to the red-haired woman. 

“What about me-?”she asked, raising an eyebrow, she enjoyed the attention but she was still annoyed and felt quite guilty about her feelings. “You and Quaxo-?”asked Alonzo trying to be more specific, he wasn’t sure what the problem was, he had some ideas but still he wanted to be sure. “Hey I’m not the crazy, jealous ex-girlfriend!Tugger and I are just friends!”she hissed glaring at the male next to her who chuckled “I never said you were jealous, but surely you’re not that fond of him, why is that?”he asked her, a questioning tone in his voice, he was pretty interested actually, Bombalurina was never the type to care about who Tugger dated that much. 

“He just doesn’t seem right for Tugger-”she huffed, she was now looking away as she tried to make herself actually believe what she had just said, Quaxo was right for Tugger, too right, this is what annoyed her, but she kept trying to convince herself otherwise. She tried to ignore how Tugger’s expression lit up when he saw Quaxo, how his smirk turned into a soft sincere smile, how he knew that Quaxo didn’t like coffee but always bought tea with milk for Bombalurina despite her being lactose intolerant. “I mean I haven’t seen much of them but Tugger did look happy, how about we try again?”asked Alonzo softly with a smile, the woman next to him sighed and looked away.  
“It’s complicated!”she said eye rolling, she wasn’t just ready to express her thoughts, despite all of her pain and anger she did feel guilty of having such feelings, she truly wished she could be happy for her friend’s happiness. “I’m seriously able to help Munk relax, trust me that’s harder than understanding your problem, you have no idea over what he worries about. He is afraid that he let a milk spoil back in London and that his dad might see it and stop trusting him! Making sense out of Munkustrap’s worries is a real fucking challenge-”mumbled Alonzo with a chuckle, at that of course Bomba smiled softly. Truth be told, her and Alonzo weren't that close, sure her Tugger and Lonzo were the charmers of the group, but she could depend on him. He was a great listener, had his way with words and was just there for you.

“It’s just, Tugger is just so happy and polite and tender!That’s not him Quaxo is changing him!” she admitted, she didn’t want to give the whole truth, she’d feel too vulnerable. “Aren’t these changes good though?”asked Alonzo raising an eyebrow, at that the woman next to him rolled her eyes “No no they are changing my best friend!He’s forcing him to change himself!That’s like peer pressure!”continued Bombalurina looking away from Alonzo “I mean shouldn’t he love him for who he is!?”.   
“Has Quaxo actually asked Tugger to do such things?And even if he did which i doubt so the kid is polite and quite as fuck, but still even if he did aren’t these good qualities?”asked Alonzo, his feet were now on the small coffee table as he checked the hallway for Munk to make sure that he wouldn’t see this, he knew his friend didn’t like it but he always cleaned the table after placing his feet on top of it. “No true love is loving him for he is!”protested the red-haired woman earning a chuckle out of the spanish man next to her “But aren’t these changes good?I remember you complaining about how forgetful and careless Tugger was when you were together-”mumbled Alonzo as he tried his hardest to try the sly proud smirk he had on his face. 

“Shut up!”yelled Bombalurina before forcefully shoving a pillow in his face. “Hey hey relax!”he said but the sound was muffled since there was a pillow on his face, “First he’s able to make him change and care, something Tugger never really did for too long, then what?Will he stop being Tugger?Will he stop liking me-?”breathed out Bomba who was now hugging the pillow tightly. Alonzo wrapped his arm around her shoulder and soothingly started massaging her shoulder.

“You just weren’t right for him and he clearly wasn’t right for you, that’s why you never helped each other evolve. Relationships are about making each other as perfect as you can, bringing out the best in people. If what you say is true, well it’s nice that Tugger actually cares for someone more than he cares for himself and don’t worry. He’s changing cause he wants to be the best for Quaxo, not because Quaxo demands it and that’s important, he’s working on himself and he’ll eventually start being more tender with you and his other friends!” explained Alonzo, his voice was so comforting and soft, it sounded like music in Bombalurina’s ears, he did have his way when it came to talking to people.

“How is a stranger better at being his best friend than I am!?!”said Bombalurina loudly, her eyes were now a little watery and she had started to tremble. “He’s not his best friend Bombalurina, he’s his partner, his life partner”.

“THAT was supposed to be me!”protested the woman only to have the male next to her eye roll playfully   
“Bombs, you weren’t happy in this relationship, the only times you were happy were when you acted like friends and not like a couple. I mean he’s your friend he’s my friend as well but remember how many times you yelled at him whenever he just left you to hang out with Jerrie and Teazer, or how he didn’t want you using his shampoo, how sad you were. Hey it’s like Mr Page and Jemima said after you and Tugs broke up, you know with the happy moments, you have the experience but miss the meaning, well that’s your case, you know what happiness is but you like Tugger so much that it’s making you unable to see the meaning of happiness.”  
At that Bomba looked utterly confused, she saw logic in it and felt so blind and puzzled right now.

“What you have now with Tugger is happiness, and now you like Tugger just for the way he is!”he said causing Bomba to heave a relaxed sigh “See, you never needed Tugger to change for you since you are ok with who is, but you are meant to be his best friend!”he continued. “Then it’s clear now!Tugger likes him more than he likes me!”

Alonzo sighed “You got it all wrong, Tugger and Quaxo have a different type of love than the one you have with Tugger, but every type of love is equally strong!”he said before giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze and as she was about to speak Alonzo interrupted her a small smirk on his face. “And Tugger won’t forget about you, and you won’t feel like a third-wheel, trust me!”he said as he heaved a sigh and ruffled her hair. “How do you know?”asked Bombalruina with a huff before folding her arms as she watched the tall black-haired male standing up and stretching “I literally spend my time hanging out with my best friend and his girlfriend Bombs, I’m the ultimate third-wheel!”joked Alonzo but the woman just sighed “Well at least you have a fiance!My ex is moving on while I just stay here-”  
Of course Alonzo’s expression lit up at the mention of his lovely Cassandra, how he loved that woman, she was the world to him in every way possible.“She’s not with us though, so I’m still a third-wheel!”

“But hey, you should seriously discuss it with Tugger, i hope you’ve realized it’s stupid, he won’t replace you and Quaxo is the right partner for Tugger while you are the right best friend for Tugger, still though, talking about your problems directly always helps!”said Alonzo before going off to check on how Demeter’s and Munkustrap’s date was going, he was actually planning on getting a book from the room but he would also check on them. As soon as he opened the door Demeter screamed and Munksutrap placed the covers over them protectively. “Jeez Alonzo KNOCK ON THE DOOR!”yelled Munkustrap through heavy pants as he tried to calm down.  
“OH MY FUCKING GOD!Tell me they weren’t fucking!”yelled Bombalurina from the living room, a small smirk was now on her face, she did feel better.

“No they’re reading this thriller novel thing-”said Alonzo chuckling as he went to borrow one of Munk’s books. It was hilarious to see the couple, Demeter was still shocked and scared from the door opening suddenly and Munkustrap had a terrified expression on his face but he was still protectively hugging and covering Demeter. “You’re such dorks!”commented the spanish man while he walked back to the door “Says the guy who randomly proposed to a stranger!”yelled Demeter huffing.

It was true, Alonzo had asked Cassandra on MANY dates but she said no, she said that she wanted someone more mature and older than her, she was 3 years older than Alonzo and she didn’t want to date an immigrant kid who just wanted to experiment. She wasn’t even looking for a relationship but she planned on getting married to someone just to avoid having a bad reputation, so she would look for an arranged marriage. That, until the day Alonzo appeared in a fancy suit holding a ring box and asking Cassandra to marry him, she eye rolled and refused, but Alonzo didn’t give up, he explained, he promised to always love her and be by her side and at that she couldn’t say no, she did like him after all and it was so sweet. So that’s how they two came to be, it was always a funny story and Alonzo took great pride in this as well.

“I mean, at least I'm engaged~”purred Alonzo teasingly earning another huff from Demeter, yes her and Munk weren’t engaged yet which was surprising considering how long they knew each other and how long they had been dating. But Munk was caring, he didn’t want to pressure her and she didn’t want to add another responsibility and worry to his head.

\----------------------------------------

The next day they were going to play on the same street, Tugger and Quaxo felt a sudden flare of joy as soon as they heard Munkustrap’s schedule for the day, things had been pretty rough, the concert was coming up and well that was stressful, Quaxo was extremely bored all day since he didn’t have many things to do and Tugger was so stressed over his relationship with Bombalurina. The only time they felt good was when they went to their room, they were themselves, they laughed, they talked and cuddled, it was a feeling of safety the two desperately needed at the time. Spending the whole day with a each other was like a gift, sadly they weren’t holding hands as they made their way to the bus station, but it was fine, they were right next to each other taking in each other’s presence.

“IS THAT A FUCKING PHONE!?”yelled Teazer excitedly as she pointed a the telephone booth “We oughta call ma’ n’ pa’!”suggested Jerrie, he took hold of Teazer’s hand and ran over to the booth “CASSANDRA-”yelled Alonzo happily soon following behind the twins. Munkustrap exchanged a look with his brother and then with Demeter “Dad!”said Tugger smiling softly as his brother nodded proudly “And Jemima!”added Munkustrap before giving Demeter a peck on the lips. 

Quaxo smiled a little but then terror was painted all over his face, he’d have to call his uncle, fuck, he wasn’t ready for this but he couldn’t make him worry. Of course he wanted to call him and call Victoria as well, tell them how things are going, explain everything to his uncle, but what if he hated him after this?He couldn’t do it.  
Everyone but Tugger and Quaxo had run off to the telephone, “Angel are you ok?”asked Tugger as soon as everyone was far away, he could tell something was wrong and wanted to have some privacy “Y-Yes, it’s just well, there’s a phone-”replied the black haired male in a desperate attempt to explain. “I get it, we have big news, especially you. We don’t have to tell our guardians now it’s fine!”said Tugger comfortingly and Quaxo looked up at him, a grateful expression on his face as Tugger tried to resist the urge to hold him, to kiss him, to comfort him on a physical level.  
“Thanks!”replied Quaxo with an awkward chuckle and they were now holding each other’s hand “Hey that’s not bad!I just don’t want you to get lost y-you’re sort you have black hair, these are some chinese qualities you got there!I don’t want you disappearing and rejoining your people!”joked Tugger a huge, toothy, proud smirk on his face. “Do you even realize how racist you just sounded-?”pointed out Quaxo raising an eyebrow, a small smirk on his face as he leaned against Tugger a little before starting to walk over the telephone booth. “I mean you are smirking and leaning against me and you do seem better, if a bad racist joke is all it takes to cheer you up i don’t mind!”said Tugger playfully.

As soon as they joined the group they saw Munkustrap looking at them with an apologetic look on his face “Quaxo, I’m terribly sorry but would you mind not calling your family?”he asked and Quaxo felt so alive right now, quickly he nodded “Yes yes of course!”he said quickly trying to make his gratitude even clearer. “Thank you!Thank you so much, phone calls here are really expensive and we can only afford one!”explained Munkustrap and Quaxo nodded once again, he didn’t mind, he wanted to call Victoria sure but avoiding his uncle and having an excuse to do was a pleasant surprise.   
“Ohhhh~~~ Strap’s gonna call his daughter~”purred Tugger earning giggles from the twins and Bomba as well as a soft smile from Demeter and eye roll from his brother “Tugger, she’s not our daughter!”protested Munkustrap once again, but of course he was smiling softly. “Y-You have a kid-!?”asked Quaxo surprised, Munkustrap would be a great dad but he didn’t strike Quaxo as the type to just leave his daughter behind to go on a tour. 

“Kind of!”said Demeter, smiling before taking Munkustrap’s hand and leading him into the telephone booth to call Jemima. 

“Tugger do you want to explain?”  
“Sure thing my angel~”was Tugger’s reply as he casually leaned against the booth “That’s gross Tugger don’t touch that with your clothes that are going to place on our bed!”scolded Quaxo, but Tugger smirked and ignored him. “Well you see, Munkustrap didn’t go to a university since well, when he was 18 there was a war but due to having broken his leg he didn’t join the military until 2 years later-”  
“THAT’S when Munk and I met~”interrupted Alonzo smiling as he remembered the day he first saw Munkustrap, they were at a training camp for the army but the war ended before they were able to join, thankfully.  
“Anyway, he doesn’t have a degree but he reads way too many books and he often visited the local orphanage to read them stories or help them study before he left to join the military-”  
“BUT there was a retarded kid there!”said Jerrie smirking only to have his sister nudge him “Jerrie!Jem isn’t retarded she has word blindness!”corrected Teazer huffing, “Hey i was just joking”   
“Well don’t joke about my almost niece and don’t interrupt me again!”said Tugger with a huff as he looked away in annoyance.

“Fine fine ya can go on!”

Tugger sighed and turned to his handsome, amazing, magical boyfriend again only to get interrupted again “Isn’t word blindness similar to being retarded?”Asked Quaxo nervously, he hadn’t really researched word blindness much but he knew someone that had it and got treated differently, took extra classes and that kid couldn’t read long books.   
“No no no!It’s like, having trouble placing letters, words, sentences in orders, misspelling, generally reading, probably having trouble concentrating, stuff like that but it’s not connected to one’s intelligence, it’s like a disorder!”explained Alonzo softly before Tugger could reply himself.

//Word blindness = Dyslexia if you haven’t realized it already, that term was used before 1961 when the term dyslexia was first used.

Quaxo nodded smiling “Alright, Tugger, you may continue!”he said smirking a little at the tall blond musician who chuckled “What an honor, allowing me to speak, oh thank you my lovely Quaxo~”he teased. At that Bombalurina gripped tightly on Alonzo’s hand who remained silent, she was getting angry again and taking it out on Alonzo’s hand was the only thing she could do.  
“But well people consider it to be just stupidity, so no one ever bothered to help Jemima, until Straps noticed her reading in a corner of the orphanage. His visits became more often, soon Demeter started helping out as well.

✨Flashback cause Dem, Munk and their ‘daughter’ deserve it✨

//Once again human names will be used, Edmund for Munkustrap, Dawsey for Tugger, Tana for Bombs, obviously Demeter for Demeter and Duncan for Old D (cause D can stand for Duncan)

Wrapping his scarf around his neck Edmund smiled at the kids around him, they were all amazed by the fairy tale he had just read to them. He knew the woman than ran the orphanage, when he found out they were sort on staff members, he couldn’t do much,he offered to keep an eye on the kids and read to them or even help the older he was 15 at the time, really young himself but older than most of the orphans. On his way out Edmund spotted a young girl with her face buried deep in a book, he smiled at that, it was nice to see young girls interested in reading. “Excuse me sir!Can you help me with that?”asked the girl, she had grey eyes and auburn messy hair tied in two short braids. “With what?”asked Edmund softly, the girl must have been around 4 or 5 years old so he ignored the fact that she had just called him ‘sir’.

“Do you promise not tell anyone though?”she asked him again and Edmund nodded and bent down so that his eyes would be on the same level as the girl’s “I’m reading Angus and the Ducks, but i can’t understand many things -”admitted the girl looking down nervously, she was afraid he’d yell, most of the older boys mocked her for not understanding the simplest of books and for even reading something other than recipes and methods of cleaning since these were the socially acceptable things young women would read. 

“I’ve never heard of it!But I myself started reading The Hobbit recently and I can't understand many things either, I read each page 2 or 3 times!”he said smiling at the girl before sitting next to her and gently taking the children’s book she was reading. “Really!?”said the girl happily and the young man next to her nodded “Of course, I’m Edmund by the way, it’s nice to meet you!”he said and the girl smiled warmly at him “I’m Jemima!”she said and the teen nodded “Nice name!Anyway let’s help you with that book!”said Edmund before holding the book open between the two.  
“The others mock me for not understanding most of the fairy tales the grown up read to us!It’s just that hearing it one time isn’t good enough, so I’m trying to give myself a head start, but reading the book myself is even harder!”explained Jemima awkwardly looking away and the other nodded “I understand, come on we can look through ever word together!”replied Edmund politely.

He spent hours there and by the end of the day he had almost finished the book, but he had to go home, cook for his little brother and father and then check on his two neighbors since their mom was going to work the night shift.

But Edmund kept visiting the orphanage and two years later he brought Jemima home, she was in tears after one of the bombings and the orphanage was going to send her away but she didn’t want to go into a temprary home. She was tired of people calling her stupid, she knew she was just as smart as the kids her age, if not smarter, going to a new home meant that she’d have to explain to the family what her condition was. ‘Word blindness’, the orphanage kept running tests on her but she didn’t have an intelligence problem, she was just word blind, still though it wasn’t a well-known term especially not in the countryside. 

Jemima didn’t want her to go to a home in which she’d learn how to cook, clean and stay away from all the books especially since they were going to think she was dumb. As soon as Munkustrap found out he offered to host her until the war ended, which he did. 

“So she’s not your kid!?”asked Dawsey, who was 12 at the time, as soon as he saw his older brother returning home with a kid. “No she’s -” “Hey i can be anything i want!What do you care!?”asked Jemima, folding her arms as she looked up at Dawsey who chuckled “Well I just wanna know if I’m your uncle, if I am i have to treat you nicely, if not then I’ll do whatever I want!”replied Dawsey with a smug smirk on his face as he looked down at the short girl.

“You can be my uncle. I want people to treat me nice!”replied Jemima, sincerely causing Edmund to blush a little and look away nervously, “I didn’t know my brother had it in him!”said Tugger smirking widely but now at his brother who avoided his gaze. For a 12 year-old Dawsey knew a little too many ways to tease and annoy his older brother.

Tana blushed a little as soon as she saw Dawsey smirk, she had liked him for some time now and whenever he smirked her heart would melt “Aww Edmund!she’s adorable!!”exclaimed Demeter as she walked over to the girl with a smile on her face “I’m Demeter!”she said introducing herself to Jemima who smiled “I’m Jemima!”said the little girl with a grin and Demeter being unable to resist the adorable-ness of a little girl gave her a tight hug.  
Jemima was forced to return to the orphanage as soon as the war ended though, by now Demeter and Edmund had started dating and they were both like parent figures to Jemima since they were the ones that mostly took care of her. Demeter’s mother never visited the Pages’ house which is basically where Demeter and Tana had started living at, and Mr Page was always absent leaving everyone in the care of the two older kids and especially Edmund.

The couple of course tried to adopt Jemima and take her out of the orphanage, a place she hated, everyone thought she was retarded and only good to be a houswife which drove Edmund and mostly Demeter mad. Due to not having much of an income, or a house of their own though they were never able to officially adopt Jemima, but they visited her and got permits to take her out on walks as much as they could.

✨End of flashback cause Dem, Munk and their ‘daughter’ deserve it✨  
//Sorry for the extremely short flashback//

“Why haven’t you ever told me about this?”asked Quaxo in confusion as he looked at Tugger who smirked but shrugged, honestly they haven’t even known each other for more than a month but it felt like they had known each other forever. “Maybe because you barely know him-?”replied Bombalurina as she forced a friendly smile on her face earning a blush from Quaxo at the realization that he barely knew Tugger. “R-right, I’m sorry-”he apologized quickly at the red-haired woman who avoided Tugger’s glares.   
Jerrie huffed and looked at Bombalurina as well but before he was able to defend his friend Tugger spoke up “Ah dear Quaxo and I are connected on a spiritual level~ even 1 day with him is worth more than a lifetime!”said Tugger, smirking confidently at his partner who rolled his eyes but secretly appreciated it. Then as soon as Tugger was about to ask Quaxo on a date Bombalurina spoke up “Well just fuck already and get over with this!”she huffed before taking Alonzo and dragging him away from the group so she can whine about it.

Obviously that reaction was enough to make Tugger’s world and confidence shatter and he just stared at his friend, great there goes his chance of asking Quaxo on a date, Bombs would just get even more jealous. He felt so guilty for not realizing it was jealousy sooner and for nor controlling his charm.  
For the rest of the day Tugger was pouty, gloomy and melancholic, no matter what Quaxo tried he couldn’t get Tugger to sincerely smile for more than 5 minutes and it was driving him crazy. He was worried but he couldn’t start blaming himself or freak out, it was his turn to be strong for Tugger, cheer him up, make him forget all of his troubles but Quaxo was never good with that. Once they were done from ‘work’ they silently walked back to their room Tugger being unable to forget what had happened with Bombalurina, but Quaxo couldn’t stand to see Tugger that way. Talking to Bombalurina was an option but he doubted it’d help, not knowing what to do he walked out of the room he shared his Tugger while Tugger was napping on their bed.

Quaxo stopped at a nearby store and bought a pack of gum which gave him some spare change, after ensuring he had enough he secretly went to the telephone booth, he could afford to make one kind of long call. Dialing the number he prayed that the other would pick up.   
“Vicky!?”asked Quaxo happily as soon as he heard someone picking up the phone from the other line.  
“QUAXO!!!”yelled Victoria just as excitedly from the other side of the line smiling widely.  
“God knows how much I’ve missed you!How is everything going?Are you having a good time?Did you call uncle?How are things between you a-and … your friend?Did you havea first date!?Have you had .. sex yet!?”asked Victoria frantically much to her brother’s amusement. 

Her brother chuckled “It’s wonderful, kind of, things with Tugger are really good, we have kind of had a date, NO SEX and no I haven’t called uncle, please don’t get mad. Have you told him?”  
“Of course I’ve told him!I mean i didn’t directly mention your sexuality but i told him everything other than that!”  
“Was he mad!?Did i let uncle down-!?”asked Quaxo worriedly but Victoria chuckled.  
“I told him you were happier than you’ve ever been for the past few years, he was shocked, maybe a little disappointed but i can’t tell for sure. He just demanded that you call him immediately and i got scolded for letting you run off like that-”breathed out the woman from the other side of the phone and her brother sighed in relief knowing that his uncle hadn’t expressed anything too negative.

“Anyway I-I don’t have much time I just need you to help me with something”said Quaxo, his sister was the only one he could trust with something so important  
“Sure what is it?”  
“Tugger, he has been feeling down, something is happening between him and his friend and I might be the cause of it-”admitted the black-haired magician, he didn’t want to blame himself, but he couldn’t avoid the truth.  
“I’m sure that you didn’t do anything wrong!Is that what’s wrong?”she asked concern in her voice but her brother heaved a sigh on the other line.  
“That, and well i want to cheer Tugger up, but i don’t know what to do, he looks awful and it really pains me!I even tried reading our book to him, i did magic but he’s just so worried and stressed, I can't keep feeling so helpless! Helping you or Plato when you were down was so much easier!Tugger is amazing, supporting and understanding and now it’s my turn to help him and I’m lost -”  
“Oh Quaxo don’t get all dramatic, you’re just seeing it the wrong way!I’m your sister, Plato is your best friend, Tugger isn’t neither of those things!He’s your boyfriend and what do you do when your boyfriend is sad-?”  
“I don’t want to have sex with him in the filthy sheets of the hotel!”whined Quaxo with a groan earning a chuckle from his sister.  
“I wasn’t talking about sex, you should do something romantic, you said you haven’t been on a proper date!Prepare something romantic!”she said smiling despite knowing that her brother couldn’t see her smile.

“I doubt he’d want a really public date, we can’t really hug, hold hugs or anything so we can’t have an actual date-”mumbled Quaxo heaving a sigh as he realized more of the struggles that him and Tugger would have to overcome. Things that were normal and easy for other couples seemed like a far away dream to Quaxo.

“Quaxo not all dates are the same!Come on let’s think of something!”said Victoria softly. Soon Plato joined their conversation and after spending way too many coins on the telephone Quaxo had finally planned the perfect date with the guidance of his friend and sister.

Confidently he made his way back to the hotel room, unlocked the door and saw Tugger coming out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist, quickly Quaxo looked away earning a soft chuckle from the almost-naked male across him. “I mean we are dating, you can see me without a shirt!”said Tugger as he leaned against the doorframe taking a nice pose to tease the other. “I know but it’s still strange-”mumbled Quaxo awkwardly as he moved towards casually, he was looking at him sure but he wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of adoring him or being all nervous.  
Tugger ignored the somewhat cold temperature of the room and swayed his arm around Quaxo’s shoulder, he seemed to be in a better mood much to Quaxo’s relief. Quaxo hugged his way and leaned against his bare chest, he thought he’d feel nervous but he actually found touching the other’s skin so pleasant and comforting, it was a new feeling.

Normally he would ot have wanted to touch someone who is naked but he enjoyed feeling Tugger’s smooth skin “I’m glad you took a bath for once-”muttered Quaxo and Tugger rolled his eyes playfully. “I really am glad, cause i want to take you on a date tonight!”said Quaxo before stepping on his tiptoes to kiss Tugger’s cheek. Seeing that Tugger wasn’t in the mood to go out Quaxo sighed “Look just trust me!I’m sure you like it!”  
“Who am i to say no to an angel?”said Tugger softly right after he gave Quaxo a peck on the lips, then he slowly let go of the shorter male and went to get a change of clothes “So when is that take of yours~?”he purred. 

“If it’s alright with you, maybe now!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HOPE you enjoyed this chapter as much as i enjoyed writing it!  
> I experimented with some new characters so i hope you liked it and it was good and stuff - I'm glad i got to explore Bomba's feelings more!
> 
> I really want to make this 'medieval/fantasy' AU fanfic for Cats, I have some ideas and such but i would like to discuss it with someone and maybe have a co-author or two!So if anyone is interested you can comment or preferably DM me on:  
> Instagram: pier_r_re  
> Discord: Pierrre#1626  
> Quotev: Eggboyo7
> 
> AND as always kudos, comments, feedbacks or just reads are welcomed and appreciated!THey do make my day~


	7. The date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TUGGER'S AND QUAXO'S DATE -
> 
> Trigger warning - mentions of minor character death (they basically talk a little about Quaxo's parents)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //THIS WEEK HAS BEEN AWFUL - We basically had no power and water for 3 days and TOO much snow!ANYWAY i'm glad to have written this chapter before these events so i can still publish my story weekly!  
> I hope you'll enjoy the date as much as i did!

“Woah you had everything planned didn’t you my angel~?”purred Tugger as he took out a t-shirt and tossed his towel on the bed leaving him completely naked, he expected Quaxo to blush, react in some way or be amazed, it was the first time he was going to see Tugger fully naked and Tugger was thinking of his every move to make himself look as attractive as possible.  
Despite the other’s efforts all Quaxo could see was the soaked towel on their blanket “God Tugger!NOT ONLY you will have to reuse this towel BUT it’s also soaking our bed!”yelled Quaxo before quickly taking the towel in his hands. Of course the tall musician pouted and turned to look at Quaxo as he got dressed, at least he could try one more thing “You don’t know what i wiped with that towel~”teased him Tugger but Quaxo just rolled his eyes, he knew what was Tugger doing and he was not going to give him the reaction he wanted “We are dating Tugger and I’m simply touching your towel-”exclaimed Quaxo calmly before neatly placing it on on the doorknob of the bathroom door.

Tugger smirked at his reaction, he loved it, he loved how unpredictable Quaxo was, how he responded to all of his teasing and flirting, how he teased him back in his own way without being rude or cold. “I love you-”breathed out Tugger accidently as he was placing a red patched sweater on top of his t-shirt.

Both of their faces heated up and they stayed silent looking at each other nervously, it was obvious they shared a mutual feeling of love, they both knew that the other loved him but it never came out in words that simply. It was too soon to use such big words, Tugger being the one to get excited about every relationship and this being literally the fourth person Quaxo had ever gotten close with. Now Tugger knew he never had such a thing about any of his previous affairs, he was careful not to leave his sexual partners hoping for something solid and stable, he wasn’t the type to commit. He didn’t even want to say the ‘L’ word to Quaxo, it was a slip of the tongue, an honest one, but it felt like a bomb had just been dropped in the room causing complete and utter silence, which was what Tugger feared the most. 

“I-I love you too-”admitted Quaxo with a soft chuckle as he smiled warmly at Tugger before rushing over to give him a tight hug, a kiss would have been better but he felt too nervous to kiss him. Tugger melted into the hug as he stared at the wall, Quaxo had just said that he loved him, it was too soon to talk about love and Tugger felt confused to have such feelings so soon, but if Quaxo shared these feelings as well, maybe it was true.  
“Angel I’m still in my boxers don’t rub against me too much~”teased Tugger earning a playful huff from the other “You have a thing for ruining our most romantic moments-”pointed out Quaxo teasingly, he loved that about Tugger though, it make the whole deal funnier and easier. The casual romance stopped before Quaxo had the chance to analyze it too much or feel guilty about it.

They kept hugging for some minutes enjoying everything they could about the other as both of them replayed the scene in their minds, they had just admitted their feelings and that made them feel much more secure and certain of their choice. It was weird, neither of them understood it, but now it was clear that they were in this mess together and they were both enjoying it, they loved it and they loved each other. “I’ll wait for you outside-”said Quaxo finally breaking the silence before he kissed the other’s jaw with an aloof smile on his face and walked out of the door leaving Tugger amazed and more in love than he has ever been in his life. This wasn’t a mistake, it felt too good to be a mistake. Quickly Tugger got dressed and walked outside the door only to see Quaxo holding a wooden ladder “So not a restaurant, or a play or something-?”asked Tugger, which only made Quaxo huff and look away “Just follow me!”mumbled Quaxo.

Then the short male proceeded in walking out of the hotel and around the busy streets as he was moving away form the hotel and the busy streets much to Tugger’s surprise, but he didn’t speak, he just enjoyed Quaxo’s figure as he gracefully led the way. Soon they were at the train station “Hey angel how far is your little date~?”purred Tugger teasingly “Just a couple of feet away from here -”explained Quaxo before checking both sides for the train before jumping down from the train platform and landed on a rail.  
Tugger jumped behind him as he ignored all the dangers this had, Munkustrap and his dad always told him to never walk on train railways. Unlike Quaxo Tugger couldn’t balance on the narrow rail so instead he just walked in the center next to his boyfriend who looked ahead, it was getting pretty dark so it was hard to see.  
But Quaxo’s bright smile was visible as he spotted the old abandoned building at the side of the railway “I’m not into haunted gothic shit Quaxo-!”muttered Tugger as he tried to act brave, he was terrified of ghosts and spirits and dolls and all that jazz, anything was scary or spooky was enough to make Tugger shake in his boots.

“Come on It’s beautiful!And i brought a ladder!”explained Quaxo before taking Tugger’s hand and dragging him closer to the house.  
“AYE QUAXO!Is that ya!?”asked a male voice with a heavy cockney accent that was all too familiar to Tugger and Quaxo “Yes Jerrie!”replied Quaxo with a smile as he placed the ladder against the wall of the one-story building. “After you~”purred Quaxo quietly as he kissed Tugger’s cheek who blushed a little as he let out a chuckle on his way to the top of the building. Of course Quaxo followed soon behind Tugger.

As soon as Tugger reached the top he just saw two dark figures standing there and he curiously stared at them forgetting that he had previously talked to Mungojerrie “‘ey Tugs what are ya starin’ at!~?”asked Teazer with a smirk that wasn’t visible due to how dark it was “Yher ugly face probably~”teased Jerrie playfully as he grinned at his sister who huffed and nudged him “We almost ‘ave the same face you dumbass!”she replied and Jerrie shrugged “I mean, it looks better on me!”he said but he chuckled and his sister flicked his forehead.  
Breaking the sibling moment Quaxo let out a cough and rose an eyebrow “Oh right right date!”said Teazer before taking Jerrie’s hand and making their way to the ladder and climbing down the old abandoned building. 

Quaxo gently took Tugger’s hand and led him to sit on a huddle of pillows and blankets, that’s when Tugger first smelled food somewhere near, he had been starving, he was grateful to have such a thoughtful boyfriend, even if the date was strange. “It’s not much-”mumbled Quaxo as he sat beside Tugger and gently leaned on his side “But dates are supposed to be enjoyable and i don’t think we can actually enjoy each other’s presence when in a public place, even hand-holding looks strange to others and I want to be able to be ourselves, we can of course do public activities too!But for -”mumbled Quaxo trying to explained but Tugger gently gave him a peck on the lips to shut him up “It’s nice, i love it Quaxo, this is what i want!”he said as he lovingly wrapped his arms around the shorter male and held him tightly and close. Quaxo let out a chuckle and grabbed a blanket before wrapping it around them and smiling at Tugger “I’m glad you like it-”

The two of them cuddled, occasionally they would nuzzle against each other or shift to get closer than they already were, but their gazes were fixated on the starry sky above them. But Quaxo couldn’t help but notice Tugger's stomach would growl every minute or two, so with a soft kiss on the cheek he got out of Tugger’s grasp and stood up “Let’s eat something-”he suggested as he went over to a certain corner of the flat roof top of the building and came back holding several plastic containers “I know little about Chinese foods so i got us a variety of dishes!”he explained as placed the many plastic containers in front of where Tugger was sitting. But in all honesty it was so dark neither of them could tell what the dishes were “So blind tasting?”asked Tugger with a chuckle but Quaxo smiled at him. “Close your eyes”instructed Quaxo with a soft tone in his voice, much to Tugger’s surprise. But the taller male complied and covered his eyes with his hands.

Just a couple of seconds later Quaxo guided Tugger’s hands away from his eyes and when the man’s hazel eyes looked around them everything was different, many candles of several colors, sizes and shapes were lit, making everything around bright and visible, immediately his eyes teared up and he pulled Quaxo into a tight hug. “You’re magical, Quaxo you truly are, you make everything better and brighter!I don’t know how a man can do such a thing, you literally can turn night into a day-”breathed out Tugger, holding the other as tightly and closely as he could. He was amazed, mesmerized at the other’s greatness, it was too good to be real, a person like Quaxo couldn’t possibly exist, his sole presence felt like a blessing to Tugger. The short magician was able to light up each one of Tugger’s days.  
Quaxo chuckled as he embraced the hug and smiled softly “I mean, you do the same for me, I had family and friends and even money, i thought these were enough but you literally gave me other needs, new needs that only you can satisfy-''mumbled Quaxo nervously as he looked away. “You made me realize how dull everything was until i met you-”added Quaxo quietly, upon hearing that Tugger pulled a little away from the hug and cupped Quaxo’s cheek forcing him to face him. 

Tugger was shocked, he was in love and upon facing such great feelings for the first time in his life he was left speechless, the light around him, the food, the beautiful starry sky, everything had disappeared and all he could see was Quaxo, his beautiful face, his chest, his white shirt, his lean figure, his long slim neck. Quaxo rose a curious eyebrow and Tugger grinned “You’re glowing!”exclaimed Tugger who was still amazed, this earned a soft chuckle out of Quaxo who looked at himself before facing Tugger again “W-What?I’m not glowing Tugs-”mumbled Quaxo as he looked into Tugger’s eyes with a loving expression on his face, he loved Tugger so much, he looked up at him.  
He was confident, fun, everyone loved him and no matter how sad he might be he never burdened others with his feelings, something that made Quaxo worry but made him respect and love Tugger even more. He felt needed and loved which made him confused but he enjoyed it, Tugger was the strongest, sincerest and most wholesome person in the world, how could he need someone like him?

“You are!Quaxo, you make the moon look dull a-and, and stupid!”said Tugger nervously, he couldn’t find the words to describe Quaxo’s beauty. Of course though Quaxo didn’t believe him, Tugger was honestly a really handsome man, much more handsome than Quaxo, he had a beautiful face, stunning hazel eyes, a somewhat sharp nose, he had tall slim legs and arms, the perfect height, body, everything was flawless. Even if Quaxo spent days trying to find something unpleasant about the other’s figure he wouldn’t be able to find anything.

“Tugger, you can’t seriously think I’m that good-”breathed out the black-haired magician nervously, “I mean, have you ever looked at yourself!?”continued Quaxo, a short chuckle escaping his lips. “I obviously have!I know I’m beautiful and all, but Angel, I can’t glow like you do!”he said sincerely and Quaxo couldn’t believe it, he wasn’t glowing. He looked at himself once again only to see his plain black vest, his white shirt and his grey woolen jacket.  
Heaving a long sigh Quaxo smirked playfully “You’re just delusional because you’re hungry-”he teased before slowly letting go of the other and handing him a silver fork “How can you seriously make silverware appear out of thin air!?”asked Tugger in amazement but Quaxo rolled his eyes “I didn’t conjure it up, jeez Tugger, i remember that you’re not good with chopsticks and brought one!”explained Quaxo chuckling softly one again, Tugger was just, he was so pure and adorable, he couldn’t believe that the tall musician with the tacky chokers, the leather jacket, with the ‘relationship experience’ was such a goofball, but Quaxo loved it and he also loved him. 

“I still choose to think that you created it with magic!”said Tugger, smirking as he toyed with the knife and looked at the food “I’ve never eaten with a magic fork before -”he exclaimed quietly, now his smirk was replaced with a childish, bright smile. The other eye rolled but sat beside him and opened the containers of the food, but before he could explain each food Tugger had already shoved his fork in the various foods mixing everything together. Quaxo just watched with a smile on his face, his uncle would never approve of this, but it was nice. “What the fuck do they eat in china?”asked Tugger as he held up as spring roll his tongue outside his mouth. 

“What’s wrong?”  
“It has like, many vegetables, it’s like a mini meat pie but with no meat!And it’s fucking hot inside!”mumbled Tugger with a pout on his face, he was mourning his now slightly burnt tongue “You can kiss me to make my tongue feel better~”suggested Tugger now smirking widely as he leaned against Quaxo who shoved a pillow in his face. “No!! I said I want a romantic first kiss!”protested Quaxo with an eye roll before taking his chopsticks and slowly and neatly eating some rice, it was really tasty.

Tugger huffed playfully before taking a container with some sort of meat and a weird sauce, he smelled it and placed it down before doing the same with the others “What the fuck are you doing-?”asked Quaxo in confusion. “After my latest injury, I’m going to carefully pick my next bite-”mumbled Tugger smirking proudly as he had now gotten the other’s attention, something he loved and longed for. Having Quaxo asking him stuff about himself and observing him seemed so sweet, he was used to the attention of course but rarely from Quaxo. Much to Tugger’s dismay though Quaxo kept eating his rice neatly.

“Well fuck-”mumbled Tugger, he was now far more interested in the short magician rather than the food in front of him despite his previous hunger, he needed a plan, but he couldn’t come up with one, so he snatched the rice away from Quaxo with a huge proud smirk on his face.

Quaxo faked a gasp, he saw it coming, he had noticed how Tugger’s curious gaze was fixated on the rice and he had also noticed how much Tugger tried to get his attention whenever he was ignoring him. “You’re so predictable-”said Quaxo dryly, but there was a playful smirk on his face, a smirk that Tugger knew and loved by now “You’re the only one that thinks so~”purred Tugger smirking as well “Others adore me~”

Sighing playfully Quaxo looked at him “I’m surprised, you’re such a bore”he replied calmly and Tugger chuckled and leaned closer playfully pinching Quaxo’s nose, Quaxo hadn’t used the word ‘bore’ in a while. “It’s been a while since the last time you called me a bore-”explained Tugger while he ate the rice, he often spoke with his mouth while eating, but Quaxo actually liked that, it was gross of course but it was kind of cute.  
“I was trying to be polite but I can't help it anymore~”teased Quaxo as he examined the foods in front of him.

This is how most of their meal went, they teased each other and Quaxo was amused by Tugger’s childish manners while Tugger was interested in everything Quaxo said or did, they were in love and they could show it now with no one around. Fancy dates, dinners, movies, plays, all of these were so meaningless and empty, there is no point in being in public if you have to hide yourself and the two of them knew. 

Once they were done with eating they just left everything laying there, they spread the blanket put out all of the candles except ones and they sat there together, Quaxo had his back against a nice fluffy pillow supported by the chimney as Tugger had his head on pillow placed on Quaxo’s stomach, the tall musician would occasionally eat again but he was mostly enjoying the other’s warmth.  
“I’ve never done that before-”mumbled Tugger in thought and Quaxo looked down at him in confusion. “I’m always the one others lay on top, you know they say I’m too tall and big or something so none of my dates would let me lay on their lap -”mumbled Tugger with a slight huff, but Quaxo just laughed softly “Hey hey that’s a traumatic experience!!Don’t laugh!”

“I mean firstly your previous dates were all women an-”  
“My angel you’re pretty short, i’ve dated taller women than you-”, upon hearing that of course Quaxo nudged Tugger’s head with his knee “Sorry just getting comfortable with my short legs -”he hissed with a smirk and Tugger rolled his eyes. “Plus I’m a dancer, I have body strength Tugger!”  
“Hey is dancing like working out-?”

Quaxo replied with a nod and hum “Yes, in a way, they both require commitment if you want to do it properly and they’re both healthy activities for your body!But dance is also much different from simply working out”  
The other smiled and nodded “Yes i mean, Lonz and Demeter go out every day to run around or something, they say it’s good for their blood fluency?I don’t know, anyway yeah they don’t move around nearly as graceful as you my angel~”purred Tugger, but he was more honest and sincere he has ever been in his life, he always loved watching Quaxo do everyday tasks, he did them with such poise and beauty, even the way he moved his hands to shove him away was elegant.

The short magician laid a soft kiss on Tugger’s forehead “Thank you, if i’m being honest you don’t move around with much grace-”pointed out Quaxo teasingly but as he noticed Tugger huffing he smiled “But i love it!I really do!”  
Tugger smirked at him and it was a smirk Quaxo knew, he also knew what he meant, it was Tugger’s way of asking him to continue, which he did. “You’re so spontaneous and, well you’re you, you’re original you are yourself, you are Tugger!It doesn’t make sense but I love that Tugs, I really do, the way you are is honestly… you’re just perfect!”explained Quaxo, his face glowing with happiness and pride as he was talking about the man he loved, he tried to put his deepest feelings and thoughts in words which was much harder than he had expected, but Tugger had stopped paying attention.

The loving expression Quaxo had on his face as he talked about Tugger was all the latter needed to be flattered and complimented, nothing could compare with the happy smile Quaxo made that could fill Tugger with much more confidence and love. “You really light up everything-”mumbled Tugger lovingly making Quaxo sigh in relief as he was nervous that he had done a poor job of expressing himself.

Several minutes or even hours had passes in silence, they just admired everything around them, it was dark but neither of them had felt such great happiness and connection to their surroundings. Being unable to see in the dark made them able to focus on their other senses and enjoy everything else around then. 

“The stars are beautiful-”mumbled Tugger and Quaxo sighed once again before shifting to get more comfortable “When my parents died-”started Quaxo and immediately Tugger turned to look at him, he was surprised to hear Quaxo talk about his parents’ death, he knew they had died, he knew that Quaxo was sad about it but didn’t analyze it too much, it was strange for him to talk about it. “I remember that Tori and I were confused, uncle told us that we would spend the night at his place and said that we would be living with him and that our parents are on a trip.” continued the black-haired male nervously, he remembered this moment really vaguely but he sensed it and felt it so strongly, like it was yesterday, it was a blurry but vibrant memory to him. “I don’t recall Vicky ever asking more, but i couldn’t sleep that night, I didn’t know what had happened of course but i felt uneasy, my uncle found me sitting in the large ballroom of his mansion with all the curtains open, the white marble shined at the starry sky and all, that room is always beautiful on a moonless night you know. The tiles just reflect the starlight -”mumbled Quaxo with a small smile on his face.  
Tugger turned so that he was laying on his belly and his head rested against Quaxo’s chest, he wrapped his arms around him and felt Quaxo holding him gently. “I laid on the cold floor unable to sleep, my uncle walked up to me and strangely laid next to me, I think, he isn’t the type to just sit on the floor. We spend some moments in silence, it was really late I don’t know how late but all the staff members of the house were asleep, i don’t remember if I asked, but uncle told me that…” said Quaxo before glancing down at Tugger and then up at the starry sky his eyes being watery.

It didn’t take long for Tugger to notice his eyes so he quickly shot up and wrapped himself and a blanket around Quaxo holding him tightly “Hey Angel there’s no need to tell me-”he said as he rubbed his shoulder soothingly. The image of Quaxo even tearing up was a horrifying sight for Tugger, seeing those beautiful bright blue eyes in pain was something he would never allow. “No it’s fine, I need to tell someone anyway!”said Quaxo with a chuckle before wiping his eyes with the corner of the blanket around him before nuzzling gently against Tugger feeling the safety and comfort he had found in the other male. “He told me that they had gone to the sky and that they were stars, I probably didn’t know what that meant but I thought of it as such valid information, a really comforting thought I don’t know why!”said Quaxo letting out a deep sigh, he had never shared this memory with anyone, he didn’t feel the need to nor thought it’d be interesting for anyone to listen to it, after all it was a personal moment between him and his uncle.

“I don’t remember what happened next, i probably fell asleep though, i was pretty young-”he said smiling softly as he thought of his childhood self, he had changed so much, he had grown up something he once longed for once but now he just felt old, he had wasted so much time and forgot to live. “Quaxo, you’re not that old!And for fudge’s sake, I’m 3 years older than you!”said Tugger, chuckling as if he knew what Quaxo was feeling. “You’re right”

Quaxo looked at him for a few seconds before turning to face the starry sky a small smile on his face as his eyes became a little watery again, he didn’t miss his parents, he did but he never met them much, but he was sad that he never got to know them and that he’ll never be able to tell them how happy he feels right now. He knew his parents would understand and support him, he even knew that his uncle would support him as well, but he feels happy and complete now, he just wished he could tell his parents. Letting them know that he was well, that he was in love, that had found happiness “Do you think that they are truly up there-?”asked Quaxo nervously and Tugger kissed his cheek “I mean, your uncle sounds like a wise man”he said with a soft smile.  
Huffing Quaxo looked at him “People don’t turn into stars!”said Quaxo chuckling, deep inside he wanted to know where his parents were though, he wanted to feel like they were indeed stars, that they could watch him every night. “Why not believe in it?My dad always told me to believe in things that make me happy!”said Tugger and he was glad to see that this had caught Quaxo’s attention. “Yeah!I mean they can see us right now, and you said that the starlight reflected on the tiles that night you were alone in the ballroom, maybe it was your parents way of hugging you!”said Tugger cheerfully and he saw Quaxo smile a little with watery eyes.

Tugger kissed his cheek once again before turning to look at a sky “And trust me, a real parent, not like my mom, like my dad, is always there. You know that they’ll be there, pretty much like the stars, they always shine bright against the dark sky, it's something stable, you can always count on them to appear. I really believe they are there-”he breathed out as he watched Quaxo wipe his eyes with the edge of the blanket as he panted nervously, he had never forced himself to deal with that loss actually, he had accepted it but him and Vicky didn’t talk about it. Sharing this memory brought him closer to his parents, closer than he thought, and felt more relaxed now with what had happened despite barely remembering it. “You are right Tugger, thanks-”he mumbled and turned around to see Tugger’s pleased and proud smile.

“I really want to meet your uncle, he seems to love you-”said Tugger, trying to gradually change the subject, with a soft smile on his face as he brought Quaxo even closer to him, the blanket still around them. “I want you to meet him as well, you won’t make a good first impression obviously my uncle has high standards out of regular people, he probably already dislikes you for making me ‘run away’ -”said Quaxo chuckling much to Tugger’s dismay who rose an eyebrow curiously “Woah you sure know how to comfort people!”he joked but Quaxo huffed “You didn’t let me finish, as i was saying, he might not like you at first, but he appreciates sincere, honest and kind people and you probably love me, so that’s also in your favor-”  
Tugger chuckled “Probably?Probably love you?”he asked, smirking but Quaxo shrugged teasingly “I don’t know~”he purred as he turned to face Tugger.

Their faces were now just a couple of inches apart and Tugger moved closer pression his lips gently against Quaxo’s this was it!Quaxo was secretly really romantic, this was the perfect first kiss, they were hugging under the starlight, the moment was perfect so he closed his eyes only to feel Tugger pulling away. He shot his eyes open mentally cursing himself in case he had made a mistake, but he wasn’t going to give Tugger the satisfaction of making him nervous; he just looked at him. “Not yet my angel~I want something better-”replied Tugger with a smirk and wink as Quaxo rolled his eyes.

“Such a bore”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //THANK YOU FOR READING THIS FAR!  
> I loved writing this chapter and yes!I hope you enjoyed reading it!
> 
> As always kudos, comments and feedback is welcomed and appreciated but just reading my story and supporting me that away is also enough and thank you!  
> Until next time, stay safe and appriciate electricity and water, you never know when you'll lose them!


	8. Unfinished rhymes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Quaxo helps Teazer out by doing a small magic show everyone realizes that he should be performing as well, that suggestion sparks up some strange emotions and will shake Tugger's relationship not only with Quaxo but with Bombalurina as well  
> //LOL Terrible summary once again just read the chapter!

After the date the couple walked back home, it was early morning so instead of going to bed they went to a coffee house next to the train station and Quaxo drunk a cup of coffee since Tugger wouldn’t let him spend the day at their room sleeping, “THE ONLY thing i can give that’ll be better than your life is London is making sure you’re not as lonely, at least me do that!” kept saying Tugger who knew how alone and cold felt Quaxo in London, not only from Quaxo himself but also from the few exchanges Tugger had with Victoria and Plato on the train. Of course the magician couldn’t keep fighting Tugger on the issue, he knew that making sense of Tugger was impossible and a really hard task to do especially if neither of them had slept that night.  
When they greeted their friends who were waiting at their usual spot for Munkustrap to give them their schedules the twins had two identical devilish smirks on their face. “Ya two look like ya didn’t get much sleep last night~”purred Teazer still smirking as she ruffled Quaxo’s hair “Did ya get any~?”swiped in Jerrie as he nudged Quaxo’s side playfully. “EHHH why are you two ignoring me-!?”whined Tugger but the twins just looked at him “Quaxo will be easier to break!”explained Jerrie, who earned a huff from Quaxo.

“No i didn’t get any sleep if that’s what you’re asking-”said Quaxo being completely clueless as to what his friend meant before yawning and receiving a chuckle from Tugger “I love you so much!”he said smiling softly at how clueless his boyfriend was.  
Bombalurina rolled her eyes and gripped Alonzo’s hand again “Love, what the fuck do they mean ‘love’ they haven’t known each other for more than a month!”she hissed as she counted the days they’ve known each other roughly in her head. Alonzo held back a whimper as the sudden tight grip his friend was giving him “Have you tried talking to him yet?”he asked, raising an eyebrow, but the red-haired woman just huffed and looked away.

But she heaved a sigh and looked at Alonzo “I’ll talk to him after Demeter’s and Munkustrap’s date tomorrow, I don’t want to ruin their mood before their big date... ”she replied, Alonzo simply nodded and smiled softly, he was really excited for his friend’s date. What made the date special was the fact that the two rarely went on dates, they grew up together, they had been living together since they were teenagers and they had been in love with each other for many years. They spent almost every day together, going on dates just seemed pointless especially since Munkustrap was so caring and loving, they didn’t need the typical type of ‘romance’, they had actual love and intimacy with each other so neither of them saw too much point in going on dates. Whenever they went on dates everyone around them behaved themselves as much as they could.

Soon Munkustrap handed them out small maps, bus and train schedules as well as money for them to get their tickets. As usual Quaxo followed the twins and Alonzo and Tugger went with his brother, Demeter and Bombalurina. Tugger’s day was almost hellish, he could sense Bombalurina giving glares at him or doing their usual sexual dance with short, quick and harsh movements, it had the teasingly-like passion but in a mean way this time much to Tugger’s confusion who kept doing his work as he sang and danced along with his friend.  
Quaxo’s day though was pretty interesting.

He was watching Teazer skilfully steal as usual, as her brother looked at her to make sure she was alright, it was hard for them to be apart when they did their work. Normally they’d have each other’s backs, they worked together in a wonderful way, but when they weren’t together Jerrie was actually a little too worried about his sister, the fact that she was a woman made everything much more dangerous. Jerrie was constantly anxious about that, worst case he’d end up in jail if he got caught by police or if he stole from the wrong person he’d get beaten up, but what happened to ladies that misbehaved could be much worse and just the thought was enough to send shivers down Jerrie’s spine. He also knew that Teazer was ignoring the dangers, being too confident, she didn’t even think of herself as a girl that much, she was female and knew it but often ignored it or forgot it.

As soon as Teazer shoved her hand in a little boy’s pockets who was holding his mom’s hand she thought everything would be fine, but she looked at her hand and there were only a few coins in her hands, it wasn’t worth it, especially since the little boy was now looking at her, that had also gotten the mother’s attention who said something in Chinese as she looked at Teazer and her son in that order. The boy replied much to Teazer’s terror. Quaxo gave Mungojerrie and Alonzo a worried look, he could literally see the way Jerrie’s hands were shaking as he played the saxophone, the two had to keep the show going to attract as much attention as they could away from Teazer. He had to think fast, he had to do something, putting on a brave face he walked there gently tapping the boy on the shoulder who looked at Quaxo in confusion.

Quaxo smiled at the boy, he was great at forcing smiles and moving with elegance, gently he moved his hand close to the boy’s ear and made a coin appear in his hand, he quickly handed it to the boy, he did the same thing many times from various places, he made coins appear on the boy’s head, shoulders, even in his mother’s hand. Not too long after the boy was giggling, the mom was smiling and the price of the few coins Teazer had taken had been doubled, now Teazer had the perfect chance to move away and sit by her brother as he kept playing music, but it was pointless.  
Every kid and most of the adults were now looking at the magician.

Gulping nervously Quaxo looked around him as the many people were staring or saying things to him “I-I don’t speak Chinese I’m sorry!”he replied “Do more magic tricks!”said a man with a smile on his face “I’m traveling from Hong Kong so i know english and chinese, the crowd wants more magic tricks!”explained the kind man who got a few nods from the other english speakers around Quaxo.  
Soon Quaxo was the center of a large crowd, much larger than the one around Alonzo and Jerrie, it was impressive, mesmerizing. Quaxo was doing tricks with everything the kids brought to him, cards, corks, spoons, he made things appear and reappear in many places, he guessed people’s cards with such ease, he shoot glitter out of his hands after some tricks and he finished his show with 11 perfectly executed fouettes when Alonzo was calling out for him.  
Even the music had stopped playing and his three friends had joined the crowd as well to admire Quaxo’s magic and eventual dancing.

They all went to the apartment they rented to eat together that day, it was fun for them to be together since they all spent their afternoons resting, even Tugger and Quaxo weren’t as tired as they thought they’d be. Demeter and Munkustrap were in the kitchen cooking, they loved cooking together, Munkustrap was the type of man to help out in the kitchen as much as he could.  
“YA SHOULD ‘AVE SEEN ‘IM TUGGER!”yelled Teazer frantically and Jerrie nodded quickly. “YEAH IT WAS DIVINE!”added Jerrie but before Teazer could continue Alonzo smiled “It was rather impressive!”he said as he ignored the glares he was receiving from Bombalurina  
Tugger couldn’t be happy with all these things though, instead he moved closer to Quaxo and glared down at the shorter male who was hugging a pillow tightly before looking up at Tugger with a confused face. The two were sitting on the couch next to Alonzo as Bomba laid on the couch’s arm right next to Alonzo, the twins were on the other side of the coffee table both sharing the armchair.

Not being able to take Tugger’s glare for much longer as the room felt silence and Bombalurina grinned as the couple was about to have an argument, this is what Tugger should get after rushing into a relationship and ignoring his best friend, preferring a stranger over his best friend. “What’s with the glare-?”said Quaxo in annoyance, he didn’t like it when people glared at him. “You danced in front of a million strangers but when i asked you to do a turn for me the other day you said that you were too ‘shy’!”whined Tugger with a huff which earned an eye roll from Quaxo but before he could reply Bomba spoke up “I’m with Tugger on this one-”she replied with a sly smirk only to receive a glare from Alonzo and the twins.

“I was just too caught up in the moment, i am actually shy!”said Quaxo as he hugged the pillow even more tightly, Tugger didn’t seem pleased with the answer “I’m your number one fan. Why can’t you show me at least one of those jump-turns you did in front of the others!?”

“Those aren’t ‘jump-turns’, they are called fouettes and I wasn’t even that good!I only did 11 or something, it’s not impressive anyone can do that-”he mumbled before shoving his face in the pillow, in fact it was a big deal to do 11 good fouettes especially with the old shoes Quaxo was wearing, they were flat resembling the shoes he wore for dancing, but still, he also hadn’t worked out before and hadn’t danced or even exercised in enough in the past few weeks.  
Tugger eye rolled “I can’t even do one fouette and the crowd loved you I’m sure you’re amazing!”he said proudly before he wrapped his arm around Quaxo trying to be more ‘gentle’ as Quaxo seemed to be upset. “You don’t understand-”mumbled Quaxo, still having the pillow in his face. Bomba opened he mouth to make a snarky comment to make the situation even worse but no words came out, she saw how upset Tugger was that she couldn’t do that to her friend, but she couldn’t watch him beg for that stranger’s forgiveness, instead she got up and stormed off to the kitchen.

Tugger looked at her before focusing his attention back to Quaxo, “Why even count the foutes?I mean the world liked it, why can’t you like it as well-?”he asked nervously “They’re called fouettes not foutes and at least 32 fouettes are considered impressive, 11 is just normal, if not bad-”he mumbled through the pillow before heaving a sigh “Angel, I’m sure that you were perfect out there!”said Tugger in a more tender way since he now regretted how harsh he had been before, he knew Quaxo’s complicated thoughts on the way he danced.

“The crowd seemed to love ya!”said Teazer with a smile and her brother and Alonzo nodded.

The ballet dancer just heaved a sigh, his face was still buried in the pillow, but Tugger gently took the pillow away and gave Quaxo a tender kiss on the cheek. “Hey you’re not ready yet to dance in front of me, it’s fine!It only makes it more interesting for me!”he said smiling and Quaxo looked at him with a grateful expression on his face, “You move with such elegance that you make it look like you’re dancing, I can’t imagine how pretty you’ll look when you do these fouettes and those turns of yours!”said Tugger with a soft chuckle as Quaxo relaxed in his arms but took his pillow back as he wanted to hug it.  
“Thank you Tugger-”he mumbled and Tugger smiled softly “Anything for you my angel!”

But Quaxo blushed madly as soon as he noticed that Tugger’s friends had been watching them. Alonzo chuckled and looked at Quaxo “Relax, it was sweet!”he said comfortingly. “Ah right!N’ ya ‘aven’t seen ‘ow nervous and stupid Lonz gets ‘round ‘is fiance~”cooed Teazer smirking teasingly at Alonzo whose face heated up slightly “N’ ya ‘ave no idea what we’ve seen Tugger do with ‘is previous dates ‘round us-”said Jerrie smirking devilisly as Tugger blushed and eye rolled “DOn’t listen to him my angel they’re trying to ruin our love-!”yelled Tugger dramatically before placing his hands protectively over Quaxo’s ears who rolled his eyes.  
“Don’t flatter yourself, i wasn’t interesting in listening about you canoodling or swapping spit with your previous affairs-”muttered Quaxo before playfully shoving his pillow in Tugger’s face who chuckled and just hugged Quaxo tightly with a warm smile on his face. “It was ‘ella awkward to watch!”commented Jerrie as he remembered Tugger’s dates. “I will go help in the kitchen-”mumbled Tugger who didn’t like this conversation at all before leaving it. “Seriously though, you are the only one out of Tugger’s affairs that we like-”mumbled Alonzo with a soft smile, but he shivered when he heard Bombalurina forcefully placing the salad bowl on the table in an aggressive manner, she had heard what he had said.

Bombalurina glared at Alonzo before making her way back to the kitchen in an angry but weirdly attractive manner, she did that, whenever people weren’t respecting her or giving her enough attention she’d move around in a such beautiful and elegant yet sexual way, it was impressive to see her move around whenever she wanted attention.

Alonzo sighed as he looked at his friend walk away, he could still feel her fiery glare despite the fact that she wasn’t even in the room anymore. “Bombalurina was nice, but honestly they’re relationship didn’t change that much, they are still touchy, close and tease each other in the most sexual ways, dating didn’t make any difference in their relationship or personalities-”explained Alonzo, a little too loudly hoping that Bomba would hear it from the kitchen. “Ya ‘re indeed makin’ Tugger a better person!”agreed Jerrie and Teazer nodded “Yes!’a ‘ave somethin’ beyond physical attraction n’ ‘e’s in a better mood n’ we’ve never seen ‘im care as much for someone!”explained Teazer, she wasn’t sure if Tugger wanted Quaxo to know all these, but the way Quaxo’s expression changed upon hearing such things was worth it.

His face lit up and he looked really happy and pleased with himself, knowing that he had such a positive effect one someone he cared so much about. Tugger had changed so many things in Quaxo’s life for the better and knowing that he could do the same for him meant too much to Quaxo. 

“What are you talking about~?”purred Tugger with a smirk as he approached the table holding the salad, normally he would look at all of them but his eyes were fixated on Quaxo, he couldn’t take them off his beautiful boyfriend. Not watching where he was going Tugger’s knee hit the coffee table and he hissed in pain. Jerrie and Teazer laughed quietly as Tugger pouted at his ‘injury’ “Don’t be such a baby!”mumbled Quaxo with an eye roll, Tugger looked at Quaxo, the pained pout still on his face “it’s your fault i was admiring your beauty!”explained Tugger and Quaxo laughed “Don’t make stupid excuses!”he said huffing as Alonzo smiled softly, he missed Cassandra, she would probably say the same thing, it was nice to see Tugger become more caring and mature, love can change people. Alonzo was never the type to flirt too much but he was good-looking and he had a Spanish accent which showed that he was an immigrant sure, but some girls were thrilled by it. 

Soon enough the table was sat, Quaxo was sitting on the ground between Tugger’s legs who had taken the seat on the couch, at first Tugger had insisted that he should sit on the floor but Quaxo knew that he was the youngest and probably shortest one here, forcing Tugger to get comfortable between the couch and the small table sounded really cruel to him. “You can use my head as a table Tugger-”mumbled Quaxo with a smile and Tugger leaned down and hugged him. Bombalurina was next to Tugger though and she had to suffer through all this “If Tugger wants to use the actual table Quaxo can move somewhere else-?”suggested Bombalurina as she once again forced a smile.  
“Nah he can’t!See that way his back is against the couch and he wants to have something support his back!It helps with sitting up straight, that’s why Quaxo never sits on stools!”explained Tugger smirking proudly of himself as he had been able to remember such a minor detail about his boyfriend. Usually he wouldn’t even remember the allergies or food preferences of his dates.

Bombalurina chuckled awkwardly but before she could speak Alonzo picked up a small radio the room had and placed on the table “LET’S listen to some music or the news~ You know eating with music is pretty fancy!”he said, smiling much to everyone’s confusion who shrugged as Alonzo turned on the radio. Everything was in chinese of course but the music was still enjoyable and it had prevented Bombalurina from saying anything too harsh,it calmed everyone down and relieved the atmosphere from it’s previous awkwardness. Other than the soft melodic songs in the foreign language everything was quiet, that was until Jerrie nudged his sister who excitedly placed her plate down on the table and spoke up. “‘ey, so Jerrie n’ I were thinkin’ that Quaxo can ‘elp make more money too!”she said smiling. “I mean ‘e was incredible, ‘e can do magic!’e won’t be as bored as ‘e is now, it’ll look rad!”  
“N’ we promise that with the extra income Teazer will stop stealin’ while Lonz n’ I are performing!”added Jerrie smirking, that of course surprised everyone and they all looked at Teazer who nodded.

“Yah, i really believe in yher skills Quaxo!”she said smirking at the black-haired male whose hands were shaking now. “OHHH Angel that’d be amazing!”exclaimed Tugger happily and with too much ease he pulled Quaxo up hugging him tightly and making him sit on his lap “What have we said about me sitting on your lap-?”hissed Quaxo quietly only for Tugger to hear. “Oh right it makes you feel small~”cooed Tugger who only hugged Quaxo tighter and buried his face in his back. The magician couldn’t help but smile softly and eye roll. 

“I will go do the dishes-”said Bombalurina who took hers and Alonzo’s plate, neither of them were done eating but Alonzo understood the sacrifices “Thank you!”said Alonzo, smiling as he ignored his hunger and watched his food go away.

Teazer looked at Bombalurina in confusion and then turned to Munkustrap as if asking for his approval, upon realizing that Munkustrap nodded nervously “Sure!It does sound like a really good idea, but only if Quaxo wants to do magic in front of a crowd”he replied and turned to look at Quaxo who just shrugged, this wasn’t enough of an answer for anyone there, including Quaxo, but he couldn’t deal with suddenly having all the attention on him. He didn’t mind speaking up, or doing magic but he wanted it to be his choice, not suddenly having the spotlight on him.

The silence was starting to become unbearable as everyone waited for Quaxo’s reply. “Angel and I will talk about it and tell you tomorrow morning!”replied Tugger with a proud smirk as he picked up his boyfriend and walked over to the door. Quaxo gripped Tugger's shirt tightly as he hated being picked up so suddenly, but luckily Tugger placed him down and opened the door for him. Feeling way too nervous Quaxo just waved at the others before walking out quickly giving Tugger a grateful look only to have Tugger smile at him “Bye!”yelled the taller male before closing the door behind him.

Not many minutes after they reached their small room much to Quaxo’s relief, who fell on the bed and took a deep breath “I don’t know what’s wrong with me-”he mumbled and Tugger gave him a curious gaze before laying down on top of Quaxo, with a chuckle the short magician wrapped his arms around Tugger “You know what i mean, me being unable to speak sometimes”he explained smiling softly. He could feel Tugger’s breathing against his chest, he could even feel his heart beating, it was strange how comforting he found these sounds, knowing that Tugger was there with him, sure he was on top of him, but he felt safe. Quaxo could tell Tugger’s heartbeat apart, or at least felt as if he could, it was the same but the way it made Quaxo feel was unique, something only Tugger could bring out of him. “Come on!It doesn’t happen that often!And it’s not that bad. I like it~ It also forces you to kiss me or hug me so I enjoy that”mumbled Tugger as he sat up slightly to look at Quaxo, but the rest of his body was still against Quaxo’s.

But Quaxo didn’t face him, he just laid there facing the door “It is rude!”he said with a groan and Tugger shrugged before giving him a peck on the cheek “I like it!And it was sudden everyone would have felt a little nervous”mumbled Tugger happily as he buried his face in the crook of Quaxo’s neck taking in the other’s presence as much as he could.Quaxo couldn’t help but giggle as he averted his gaze trying to look at Tugger without moving his neck “What are you doing-?”he asked in confusion and he could feel Tugger grinning against his skin.  
“Enjoying you~”purred Tugger seductively, it was something that would have turned on most of his previous girls, making them smirk or just enjoy it, but Tugger wasn’t doing it to arouse or to get that type of reaction out of Quaxo. As expected the short magician laughed “You’re enjoying my neck if you enjoyed me you’d sit still and talk!”said Quaxo playfully, but he knew that the other wouldn’t be offended, he knew that Tugger was able to understand how much Quaxo appreciated this. Tugger of course cared for his problems, but Quaxo had the habit of overthinking and that’s when the tall musician helped him out, by making him laugh or relax or distracting him.

The two had almost immediately understood their relationship, they didn’t need to explain or to ask, being themselves was enough to make these two compatible. By now both of them felt as if they had been best friends for ages, they weren’t just a couple it was something greater, not to the world but to them. Their love was something beyond words, beyond a simple relationship.

“Thank you”breathed out Quaxo with a smile as Tugger chuckled and started laying gentle kisses on the other’s neck who was trying to hide his smile and not to giggle. “Stop, I’m ticklish-!”said the magician as another giggle escaped his lips “Oh you can’t be that ticklish!Seriously you’re the only one who giggles while I’m doing this!”whined Tugger playfully before stopping and ruffling Quaxo’s hair who was trying to gently shove him away. “I find mentioning your previous romantic and sexual affairs gross -” mumbled Quaxo playfully, of course he didn’t mind especially since the comparison happened in favor of Quaxo.

The taller male chuckled and smirked proudly “Are you maybe jealous?or possessive~?”he teased but Quaxo eye rolled before letting out a huff and stopping his effortless attempts to shove Tugger away. “No I’m not ‘jealous’ i just find gross how sexually active you’ve been-”he replied dryly, he didn’t like the idea of Tugger with other women but Quaxo probably didn’t want to picture anyone having sex or anything like that. It’s strange he didn’t care about doing it himself but picturing anyone else doing something other than kissing, especially people close to him, made him feel uncomfortable, or even the sheer thought of these made him feel uncomfortable.  
But Tugger shrugged before getting off Quaxo himself and looking at the ceiling “Once you’ve had your first time you’ll enjoy it, or well not mind it as much!Trust me it’s not bad, it’s just nature you know-”he said with a chuckle and Quaxo glanced at him for a few seconds before facing the dirty ceiling again “Was Bombalurina y-your first?”asked Quaxo hesitantly, he was hesitant not due to jealousy or awkwardness, he just didn’t know if Tugger felt nervous about it.

Tugger’s reply was a simple nod and a short hum, Quaxo looked at him but soon turned to look at the ceiling, he didn’t feel awkward but neither of them felt like looking at each other at the moment, “Were you, 16?”asked Quaxo again, he had never asked about sexual encounters before but he had been curious, he had read about such things in books but never asked. Asking his uncle would be awkward and shameful, after such a conversation Quaxo wouldn’t be able to even face his dear uncle again, Victoria or Plato were not an option either, Victoria was a female and his sister and Plato’s experiences wasn’t something Quaxo would ever be interested in considering with whom Plato has been.

Smirking widely, but still looking at the ceiling, Tugger chuckled “Does someone need to have ‘The talk’ ?”he asked, raising an eyebrow as if Quaxo was facing him, of course Quaxo didn’t dare to look at him. “What talk?”he asked in confusion and Tugger chuckled once again “About intercourse-”replied Tugger simply.

Making Quaxo’s face heat up a little, “No no i know how the body works, I-I just-” mumbled Quaxo before closing his eyes and rolling over “Forget it-”he added a quiet groan escaping his mouth his eyes still closed as he held a pillow over his face. Upon noticing it Tugger quickly rolled over to Quaxo and hugged him “I’m sorry for teasing you-”he apologized, but Quaxo needed more than that “It’s fine to be curious, especially you since you didn’t have much of a social life!”continued Tugger still attempting to cheer him up or make him forgive him. “Look if Bombs and I weren’t neighbors and if she didn’t have a crush on me i probably wouldn’t have tried that early myself!”he said again, making Quaxo open his eyes and look at him in disbelief.

“Yeah yeah it’s true!You know it just happens and it happened early for me, maybe a little too early. If i had waited more i wouldn’t have the reputation i have and well, i might have tried more serious relationships- I wasn't mature enough on my first time... ”he admitted with a sigh and Quaxo turned to face him, once again their faces being inches apart. “Thanks-”said Quaxo, smiling nervously and Tugger gave him a peck on the lips “It’s no problem!”. “If i can give you one advice though, it’ll be to wait, enjoy it and don’t think about it, it’ll happen when it’s time and with the right person!”said Tugger, smiling softly as Quaxo as he gently caressed his cheek.  
The short magician quickly moved even closer to Tugger giving him a hug “I’ve found the right person I guess, I’ll just wait for the right time-”he mumbled awkwardly making both of their faces heat up and blush.

Neither of them had expected such a thing, especially not from Quaxo, this was the first relationship Tugger saw more romantically than sexualy, he would never mention such a thing or force Quaxo and despite finding him attractive he didn’t think of him that way. But he was glad at the prospect of eventually doing such a thing with the person he loves the most, it’d be strange sure, really strange, but it’d matter to him a lot. It was a way for Quaxo to say that he trusted Tugger and the tall musician knew how much Quaxo was struggling with homophobia and how awkward he had been in the train about even seeing each other shirtless. Tugger was actually helping Quaxo get rid of anything that held him back, that combined with Quaxo’s trust was everything Tugger needed at the moment to love his little magician even more.

Quaxo felt nervous he never thought he’d ever say such a thing let alone for another man, the thought of coitus had been disgusting to him for some years and recently realized that it is a part of life, a part of life he never saw himself enjoying or even having. But with Tugger next to him, everything seemed possible, every part of Quaxo’s previous miserable, lonely, overmodest, worryful life was gradually shattering before his eyes and he couldn’t feel happier or more free. He was himself the person he always wanted to be and he was accepted and loved for it, he was getting to know his actual self, someone that had disappeared shortly before he had entered puberty, but he wasn’t alone, he had Tugger with him, helping him, guiding him, giving him his unconditional love and support.

Silence fell over the room for what seemed like hours, no one dared to break the enjoyable silence that was only a sign of love and intimacy. That was until Quaxo looked up at Tugger “You’ve changed me, for the better, thank you-”he mumbled and Tugger turned to face him “Don’t be stupid Quaxo, why are you thanking me?”he asked with a sigh, it was one of the rare occasions in which Tugger prefered to use the other’s actual name instead of a cute pet name. “I would never be here if it weren’t for-”  
“For you Quaxo you’re the one making these choices!”cut in Tugger smiling warmly at him before giving him a gentle kiss on the tip of his nose making Quaxo chuckle.

“But-”  
“No buts!”cut in Tugger again, smirking widely, by now Quaxo knew that he stood no chance in protesting, Tugger was willing to interrupt him all day if that’s what he had to do.

“Wanna go eat something?”suggested Tugger grinning at Quaxo who nodded with a smile on his face. The two got up and walked out of their room, then found a small supermarket and got several snacks such as prawn chips, rice chips, some hard candy, anything that looked tasty especially since they didn’t know these snacks. Each of them carried a bag back to their room full of junk food and some drinks, lemonades, juices, sodas and a couple of beers. At that night Quaxo discovered that Tugger had a terrible taste in foods, he kept eating those kelp chips that Quaxo himself couldn’t even stand smelling, it was old seaweed fried in too much oil. The magician was really picky, he ate some of the hard candy which were surprisingly good and didn’t try all of the snacks, just the ones that seemed nice, unliked Tugger who mixed up flavors of all kinds, he dipped his snacks in beer or lemonade and later on mixed his drinks. Of course Quaxo made a mental note to never have dinner with Tugger and his uncle and blamed this to Tugger eating too much canned fruit.

It was night now and they both laid on their bed under the warm soft blanket, this time they didn’t cuddle but they knew that Quaxo would probably curl up against Tugger in his sleep, it always happened and they both enjoyed it. At first Quaxo was a little worried once he had noticed it, but Tugger never commented on it, on the contrary if anything Tugger was holding him in his sleep as well.  
“Hey about the magic show, will you do it-?”asked Tugger curiously but Quaxo remained silent, “Come on angel!We could use the money and well, I’ve seen you do magic in front a crowd you love it and you fucking never run out of ideas!”

With a short shrug Quaxo looked away, he didn’t want to reject him and he did love magic but he didn’t feel right “Quaxo, you’re a wonder when you’re performing, either it’s magic or dancing it looks beautiful, i mean you know me, i can’t sit still for more than 10 minutes but when you’re doing your think i can stare at you for hours standing still and admiring you!” said Tugger and the other turned to face him, still in thought “Fine, I’ll probably do it, but let’s just sleep for now”mumbled Quaxo nervously and rolled over laying on his side turning his back to Tugger and facing the door. A few seconds after Tugger had wrapped himself around Quaxo, having his over Quaxo’s body and tangling their legs together.

“Goodnight-”mumbled Quaxo as he glanced at Tugger with a smile on his face before closing his eyes and snuggling closer to him. “Night my angel~”cooed Tugger who held him tightly and lovingly as he was holding the most important thing in the world, which he was, Quaxo mattered to him and Tugger loved him.

Quaxo was woken up by Tugger laying soft kisses all over his neck, Tugger was next to him and then moved so he was on top of Quaxo with a smile across his face “Wake up Angel!”exclaimed Tugger cheerfully as he leaned closer and gave Quaxo’s neck another gentle kiss “I don’t want your saliva all over me-”joked Quaxo as he sleepily stared at the man on top of him with a gentle smile on his face. All the tall musician gave as a reply was a shrug before he laid down on the other his chest uncomfortably pressing against Quaxo’s face.  
Being unable not to breathe in the other’s scent Quaco chuckled “You stink-!”he lied, Tugger didn’t stink sure he didn’t smell like flowers either but unlike the first few days on the train Tugger didn’t smell. “I took a shower before you woke up, so don’t lie to me~”purred Tugger playfully and the other eye rolled despite knowing that he couldn’t see his face right now “You don’t smell soap either”replied Quaxo as he squirmed to get out of Tugger’s grip or to push Tugger off him.

“I don’t use soap!”explained Tugger as he jumped of Quaxo and fell on the empty space next to him, he noticed the curious look Quaxo was giving him so he chuckled “It has a strong scent and i don’t like foreign soaps they can ruin my skin, i also have a special Nivea cream which i forgot at my house so i can’t risk using unknown products while not having my cream with me!”he continued with a smirk on his face as Quaxo eye rolled and turned to him “God you’re such a diva, seriously not even my sister takes care of herself that much!”teased Quaxo and the other laughed “I have to take care of myself for you, how can i compare to angel~?”he purred winking at the other smiling widely.

Then Tugger shot up and pulled the covers away from Quaxo smiling widely “Get up i brought you breakfast!”he exclaimed happily and the other chuckled before getting up and stretching “No offense, but why are you so kind today?”he said glancing curiously at him and Tugger chuckled nervously "I kind of upset you yesterday twice and it's my way of making up for it!" he explained having an adorable childish smile on his face.

Then Tugger shot up bringing Quaxo a small tray with an omelet on it. He had a sincerely happy expression on his face and he was proud as he had made the omelet himself.

“It’s the same recipe as the one on our first date!”he announced happily “And i made you a cocoa, i know how much you like it, but i don’t know if it’s good or not i just took cocoa dust and stirred it in boiled water-”he said with a chuckle “Look the package was in Chinese alright, it’s not my fault!”he added and Quaxo smiled at him before kissing his cheek “Thanks, but i’m not hungry-”

Upon hearing this Tugger pouted and looked at him “What!?Why!?”he whined and Quaxo chuckled “I’ll drink the cocoa, but i never eat immediately after i wake up i usually take my breakfast some hours later!”he explained and Tugger nodded as he remembered that Victoria had probably mentioned something about that “Right, sorry Angel-”he apologized and looked down in an awkward manner, he wanted to make up for upsetting Quaxo and he had failed miserably to do so. Tugger heaved a sigh, placed the tray on the bed and sat down himself looking at the floor in a troubled manner.  
Gently Quaxo slided next to him and wrapped his arms around his waist giving him a hug “Tugger I didn’t even remember the dance thing and you are right it is rude not to have danced in front of you, please don’t feel bad and don’t be sad i can’t stand watching that-”he admitted with a soft and gentle chuckle, he had never been so direct and simple about his feelings, it was strange.

A small smile spread across Tugger’s face as he looked at Quaxo before swaying his arms over his shoulders and facing him. “I just, I don't want to mess things up with you in _any _way, I want to be the kind of partner you deserve. It’s silly of course you wouldn’t remember the dance thing, but i want to make sure everything is more than perfect between us!”  
Hesitantly placing a quick kiss on the other’s lips Quaxo smirked a little feeling proud of himself for kind of kissing another guy “Tugger, everything is perfect between us! It really is trust me and sorry if i make it seem otherwise sometimes, i know I can be really rude and snob sometimes i’ll fix it!”  
“No no!Quaxo I love you, I’m having fun with you like a lot of fun, don’t change anything and you’re not rude you’re kind of snarky but that’s wonderful!”insted Tugger smiling at him and Quaxo blushed and shrugged nervously feeling unable to speak at the moment. At some point Quaxo opened his mouth but no words came out, he didn’t know what to say so his mouth just hung open.__

__A soft chuckle escaped Tugger’s lips “Thanks though, i shouldn’t overreact!Now go wash your teeth. I know how nervous you feel if you talk to people before washing your lips!”he said with a chuckle as the other moved slowly away and into the bathroom, still blushing and unable to talk. But Tugger had learned to take it as a complement, that he left Quaxo speechless and it was also his emotional and physical reaction which Tugger loved. Soon they were both ready to go, Quaxo having washed his teeth and Tugger having eaten the omelet before forcing Quaxo to eat at least some claiming that it was bad for his health, something the magician really appreciated he was kind of a brat when it came to food, especially when he was little. So it was nice having someone care and force him to eat better partially ignoring his eating quirks._ _

__

__

__They walked with Jerrie and Teazer to their usual meeting spot but Munkustrap didn’t explain every little detail today, he was excited about his day so he just reminded everyone that their first and last concert in Beijing would be tomorrow._ _

__“So Quaxo, are ya gonna do the magic show!?”asked Teazer raising an eyebrow as she glanced over at Quaxo and her brother nodded excitedly next to her “Please do it!”he begged as he had been amazed as well by the other’s tricks “I’m not sure, I mean i just have a deck of cards with me I don’t even have a nice outfit on-”he mumbled, of course the rather dull outfit had been purposely chosen to serve against Quaxo putting up a magic show. “Quaxo c’mon!”whined Jerrie._ _

__Bombalurina's eyes rolled and looked at Alonzo “He’s the center of attention again-”she muttered in annoyance but before Alonzo could speak Tugger spoke up “Hey come with me and Bombs today alright?”  
That made Bombalurina gasp and huff, Tugger was trying to be caring and polite for once, what a surprise “Yeah if he wants to tag along we might as well get going-”she muttered under her breath, but as soon as she felt Demeter’s worried gaze on her Bombalurina heaved a sigh before forcing a smile “We don’t want to be late!You two will have plenty of time to talk things out on the bus!”she added faking a sweet polite tone, she just had to keep this up until Demeter and Munkustrap’s date, not cause any drama that would upset them, then she would talk to Tugger._ _

__With Quaxo added to their usual group Munkustrap, Demeter, Tugger and Bombalurina parted ways with the others, if it weren’t for Tugger walking next to him -being as close and intimate as they could in public- Quaxo would be freaking out, he was anxious worried and for the first time in a while he was away from the twins and Alonzo. It is strange but he felt awkward around Bombalurina, he didn’t know why but he couldn’t help but feel that she dislikes him and he also felt some sort of guilt. Ignoring those thoughts had been easy but that was while he was apart for Bombalurina, now Quaxo could feel Bombalurina’s glares, but it could all be in his mind, he could be jealous and possessive over Tugger, but that thought seemed to upset him even more._ _

__The bus was fairly small and crowded, but none of them minded it. It gave Tugger and Quaxo an excuse to be close as their bodies were forced to press against each other, but with some new passengers Bombalurina got uncomfortably pressed between the two almost being sandwiched in the middle. Needless to say that all three of them blushed a little and looked away, they had slept together but now they were literally against each other, that mixed with the awkward tension the three of them could feel made things worse, especially since they had to keep everything flawless for their friends’ date.  
Getting off the bus was a relief to them, the tension was still there heavier than ever but at least they weren’t rubbing against each other now._ _

__“So Quaxo, are you willing to try?”asked Munkustrap with a nervous smile on his face and Quaxo shrugged, he didn’t know what to do “Hey Quaxo take your time!”said Demeter comfortingly smiling at Quaxo, they hadn’t had some time together in a while but they still saw each other as somewhat close friends. They watched together as Bombalurina and Tugger prepared, it was strange, Quaxo always saw street artists as something kind of filthy he never looked at them, especially not to simple singers, he thought that they should at least show something to the world like an instrument, but now his point of view had totally changed.  
Demeter and Munkustrap wanted to go on their usual walk but leaving Quaxo alone wasn’t an option, it was but it wasn’t polite and they didn’t want to leave the young man all alone. This was a mistake, Quaxo was already feeling pressured to do magic or at least something, he was keeping the couple away from doing their usual things, he could feel Tugger checking on him with every passing moment, he should have stayed back. But then he felt Tugger taking his hand gently “Hey guys, I won’t sing today!”he announced before dragging Quaxo away and placing him on a small clearing between the walking crowd at the other side of the street._ _

__“I know you can do it!You’ve done it on the train, you did it to help Teazer, you are magical, actually magical alright Quaxo?So please just trust me on this and do it!”he said and Quaxo nodded awkwardly. Then upon hearing Tugger say something in Chinese all of their friends were looking at Tugger and even some of the locals, Quaxo was even surprised himself, but that’s when he noticed the paper having hanzi and english scribbled all over it “Hey i told them to look at you, do something!”said Tugger with a chuckle before stepping out of the way and walking somewhere far from Quaxo but still looking at him, of course he had placed his empty guitar case in front of Quaxo for people to toss money in it._ _

__With shaky hands and a small smile on his face Quaxo started with a simple trick, getting something out of the sleeves of his jacket, a nice deck of cards which he gracefully showed to the ‘crowd’. Then hesitantly he did an impressive trick with the cards, turning them into a fan and when he turned the fan around a figure of a large dragon was over the cards. Tugger had never seen that one before and he started clapping.  
Soon enough the tricks became more complicated and interactive, having volunteers from the people gathered around him, almost every kid was welcomed to join and do a trick with the magician. “YOU’RE AMAZING QUAXO!You’re a wonder you’re beautiful!”yelled Tugger from the crowd with a large smile on his face, his eyes glowing with excitement, something that seemed far more magical to Demeter and Munkustrap than any of Quaxo’s tricks._ _

__Tugger was in love, they knew it but they were now seeing it, not once had he done that for anyone else, he was supportive and had a heart of gold sure, but not openly say that, risking getting arrested or worse. “I LOVE YOU!”yelled Tugger again and Munkustrap smiled softly._ _

__That was enough to make Bombalurina snap. She was left in the background holding Tugger’s guitar, she slammed it to the ground “FUCK YOU-”came her voice bitter as ever as she walked away._ _

__The trick Quaxo was doing stopped mid-way leaving the kid in front of him with a pout on his face, but he couldn’t move a muscle as he noticed Tugger’s hurt and pained expression. Demetr quickly made her way to Demeter but before she could something Tugger eye rolled “Hey Bombs why are you so jealous!?I’m sorry I don't have a crush on you!Is that what you want to hear!?GET OVER ME!”he yelled before walking off as well.  
All five of them were left speechless and as the kid started whining Quaxo finished the magic trick._ _

__The red-haired woman was glaring at Tugger, her eyes more fiery than her red hair, he hadn’t just said that, her best friend can’t be such a jerk over some guy “YOU’RE SO SELF ABSORBED!”she yelled as she walked away herself, she didn’t know if he was listening to her but she didn’t care. Not even Demeter who sometimes saw the worst in Tugger saw that coming, Munkustrap looked over to his girlfriend knowing that their date would have to take a rain check before he went off to comfort his brother, Demeter doing the same thing with her sister._ _

__Quaxo was left alone, he stopped the tricks and gathered up all of his friends’ things before waiting for them._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //THIS chapter was meant to be longer actually but it was going to get too big so i'm splitting it in half.  
> ANYWAY THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING THIS FAR!Please note that i can't write arguments and angst easily (idk if this counts as angst tho) anyway i'm not good at such topics BUT i hope i didn't fail to keep your interest!
> 
> Comments, thoughts, feedback and kudos are more than appreciated and of course welcomed but just thank you for simply reading that's just as pleasant and means a lot as well!  
> Until next time stay safe and enjoy life!


	9. Yesterday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WILL TUGGER AND BOMBA BECOME FRIENDS!?!?  
> FIND OUT IN THE CHAPTER BELLOW!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //I'm glad i got to publish this earlier than usual, this is the only purely non-toxic thing in my internet life -  
> I hope you enjoy, thanks for reading this far!  
> EDIT: I deleted this chapter by accident BUT i'm publishing it again!

All Quaxo did was patiently wait there and when he noticed that they weren’t coming he took the liberty to take all of their stuff himself including Tugger’s now broken guitar, it was time to leave he should stick to the schedule. So he carried all the things back in the bus, surprisingly he felt somewhat responsible but not guilty, all he knew was that he was annoyed, by both Bombalurina and Tugger, they were both self-centered in Quaxo’s eyes. She caused a scene in the middle of China just cause Tugger was helping him out, couldn’t she have talked? And Tugger, thinking that she was jealous and yelling that!? Quaxo thought that this was the most rude and disrespectful thing a man can do to a lady.

But he didn’t plan on yelling at Tugger or even mentioning it, he was mostly fearing in what state he’d be. As soon as he got off the bus he went to find either Alonzo or the twins and he luckily met them out of the apartment.  
“Hey where are the others-?”asked Alonzo with concern in his voice, he didn’t know what had happened of course but seeing only one out of the five people you expected is usually not a good sign. With a long sigh Quaxo looked at Alonzo “Bombalurina and Tugger kind of argued?It was mostly yelling and they parted ways, Demeter and Munkustrap are trying to comfort them”he explained in a plain tone, he was upset sure, he felt partially responsible but he wouldn’t let this eat him up.

A groan escaped Alonzo’s lips and the twins looked curiously at him “God i thought she could control herself-”muttered Alonzo with a sigh “What do ya mean-?”asked Jerrie, raising an eyebrow. “Well, we had kind of talked about it and she planned on talking to Tugger about her problem with his new relationship”explained Alonzo with a nervous chuckle feeling as if he should have pursued Bombalurina to have spoken sooner, he then turned to Quaxo “Look Quaxo, I’m sorry please trust me it’s nothing personal!”he said smiling awkwardly at Quaxo as he tried to comfort him, but the shorter male nodded with a sigh “I know, i think i do, anyway i just want to go to the hotel and wait for Tugger if you don’t mind-”he said and as the others nodded Quaxo handed Jerrie the broken guitar “I don’t know what to do with this?I can keep the speaker thingies the cables and the guitar case in my room for now, but if Tugger comes up it could spark up negative emotions”

Jerrie nodded as he took the broken instrument, soon he and Teazer went up the apartment with Alonzo not wanting to leave Alonzo alone since his roommates weren’t here. The twins felt as if they should comfort Quaxo in a way as well but the strangest thing was that he seemed fine, it was surprising but they trusted him to know what’s best for him and to not be so shy, they also knew that he could consider them friends.

Upon entering his apartment Quaxo felt lonely, it wasn’t the normal loneliness though, it was a much more pleasant one, he knew he had friends near him, so he felt to have the upper hand when it came to this particular loneliness, at any moment he could stop it, but he had chosen to be alone, to think so that he would be able to help. So he pressed his back against the bedpost and curled up hugging Tugger’s pillow tightly to give himself some sort of comfort in order to clear his mind and relax more.

Hours later when it was noon Tugger walked inside, his cheeks were red, his eyes were puffy and instead of his usually cheerful or confident expression all Quaxo saw was anger and pain. Tugger stood at the door nervously before walking over to the bed, but Quaxo had already ran up to him and hugged him “I’m assuming you didn’t make up with her-?”mumbled Quaxo nervously as Tugger wrapped his arms around the shorter male’s shoulders and led him towards the bed. They laid down together with Tugger’s arm tightly wrapped around Quaxo who was lying still on the bed with Tugger next to him.

It took Quaxo some minutes to finally notice that Tugger had started crying and shaking again, it was one of the most painful sights Quaxo had ever seen so he rolled over gently hugging him and giving him a soft, quick kiss on the lips “Hey Tugger, breath, it’s alright, calm down-”said Quaxo soothing and Tugger nodded as he took some deep breaths focusing on the male in front of him in order to relax a little bit “I just, I don’t like arguments a-and she called me self-absorbed! I want her to be happy for me!She’s my best friend why can’t she be happy!?”said Tugger still crying a little and buried his face in Quaxo’s shoulder staining his shirt with tears and eyeliner.  
Looking at the stain Quaxo smiled softly “You wear eyeliner?!”he exclaimed in surprise trying to get Tugger to talk about something else, it worked, Tugger looked up at him and nodded before he wiped his eyes with his sleeves “Yeah and mascara sometimes but mostly eyeliner, it makes my eyes look thinner and prettier-”explained Tugger nervously as he looked away, it wasn’t really common for guys to wear makeup products or any sort of cosmetic but Tugger felt so pretty when he used all sorts of products to draw attention to his eyes.

“I love it and it looks natural, i wouldn’t have noticed if you hadn’t stained my shirt-”commented Quaxo with a smile and Tugger chuckled “You’re just being polite, look i know it’s strange but i like it-”insisted Tugger, Quaxo nodded quickly “Yes I understand it suits you and you don’t need to explain yourself to me, i have a sparkly suit-”he said with a chuckle and much to his surprise Tugger chuckled as well and gave him a kiss on the cheek “It suits you, makes you look expensive-”  
Quaxo raised an eyebrow and glanced at him “Expensive?”he asked with a short chuckle and Tugger just smirked playfully and shrugged.

Now they were both smiling, Tugger still had puffy eyes from crying too much and smudged mascara and eyeliner around his eyes, but they were fine, Tugger felt a little bit better, his troubles seemed far away now, they couldn’t reach him when he was in Quaxo’s hug since that was enough to make him as happy as possible.

Tugger was the one to break the silence again and he just sighed “What’s wrong with me and Bombs?”he asked a troubled tone in his voice, Quaxo had been wanting to discuss it with Tugger but he wanted to make sure that the other was fine with the discussion. “Munk said that it’s just hard to adapt since she’s feeling lonely, Lonzo has Cass, Jerrie and Teazer are always with each other, Dem and Munk and now me with you. It makes sense to some extent, but still can’t see be happy for me?”he asked with a long sigh and Quaxo looked at him.  
“I think she is happy, but Munkustrap has a point a-and well maybe she sees something she wants in our relationship-?”suggested Quaxo earning a curious glance from Tugger “She’s jealous?”asked Tugger in confusion and Quaxo chuckled nervously.

“Kind of, not really but in a way yes. Look, when Plato and Victoria started dating at some point we got invited to one of those parties, usually Victoria and I would go together, we would be each other’s ‘plus one’, wear matching outfits and dance together.  
Of course Plato would be there as well but when they became a couple, they were the dancing partners, Plato’s tie matched with Victoria’s dress. Another guy entered her life and actually made her more happy than i did. He offered his coat which at the time was cozier than mine cause she was taller than i was at that age-”he said smiling awkwardly about the part about his height which earned a soft smile from Tugger.

“My point is that he made Victoria happier than I did, he was suited to be her partner since i was just her brother, but it still felt strange to me at some point. When she got two tickets for something she’d usually ask Plato, he was the one going backstage after her performances and such. It’s natural but strange, soon though i realized the situation and was more understanding towards them, they were in love, Bombalurina is just far more loud than i was but that has to do with our personalities-”

“So what did you do about your issue?”asked Tugger in concern and Quaxo shrugged “Nothing really, i just waited for the spark to pass-”he mumbled making the other nod in thought. “Do you think our spark will fade-?”asked Tugger in concern, all Quaxo replied was a simple shrug once again “I-I don’t know, probably yes”he said nervously, he didn’t want to think about the future.  
Tugger kissed Quaxo’s cheek with a smile on his face “Thanks for making me understand-”he said and the other chuckled “Tugger, you’ve helped me much more than i can ever help you in a lifetime”he said but before Tugger could protest he gave him a quick kiss “Now go make up with your friend!”he said before gently moving out of Tugger’s grip and standing up from the bed. “What about you!?”asked Tugger with concern in his voice which only earned an eye roll from the other “I’m old enough to take care of myself, worry about you for a change!”said Quaxo and Tugger nodded with a smile “You’re magical-”he yelled before he shot up from the bed and ran out of the room “I LOVE YOU!”he yelled as he closed the door.

“He’s so childish-”muttered Quaxo softly before walking up to the desk and taking his pair of keys, he was going to go out with the twins, he hadn’t seen much of them today and they were used to spending time together.

“Aye Bombs, are you in there-?”asked Tugger with a gentle knock on the door of the small apartment his brother was renting. “What do you want-?”hissed Demeter from the other side of the door, her voice was full of anger, no guy would treat her sister that way, she was extremely protective of Bombalurina. “I’m here to apologize, Jeez Dem i’m not gonna slap her or something -”muttered Tugger with an eye roll, he disliked Demeter whenever she got all ‘protective’ against him. Then the tall musician forced the door open as Demeter who was holding the other side of the door of course was not a match when it came to strength for him.  
Bombalurina glared up at her friend, her eyes were also smudged with mascara, a sign that she had been crying as well, but as she noticed Tugger’s eyes her expression softened a little. “Er, firstly Dem sorry for ruining your date-”started Tugger awkwardly as he wanted to be alone with Bombalurina for this conversation. “It’s fine”mumbled Demeter with a small nervous smile on her face as she realized that Tugger’s intentions were good “We will have our date in Hong Kong in a few days!”she added quickly trying to ease things up before walking out of the room “I’ll leave you two alone!”she added as she walked away.

Tugger sat at the mattress of the room right next to Bomba, they both had their backs pressed against the cold moist wall “Whose room is this?”he asked nervously and Bombalurina sighed “Mine at first, but it’s moist and dump so i sleep on the couch and Lonzo on the floor-”she admitted with a slight chuckle, Alonzo was actually an extremely good friend to her and everyone else but he usually got labeled as ‘Munkustrap’s friend’. 

“ ‘s nice here, you can grow those funny plants with the hats, mushrooms!”said Tugger with a chuckle and Bombalurina smirked “How many times we will talk about this!?If Mushrooms were people that thing would be their head not their hat!”she said and Tugger playfully nudged her “No it’s their hat!Who has a head like that!?”  
“Who has a hat like that!?”she replied instantly, teasingly sticking her tongue out at him who shrugged “I mean, i might get a hat like that!”  
“I might get a head like that-”replied Bombalurina dryly as she leaned against him not liking how the disgusting wall felt against her back, Tugger’s shoulder was much better.

Looking around the room to find something to talk about Tugger sighed, it was empty so he should just go ahead and talk about the elephant in the room “I’m sorry for being such a jerk, i didn’t try to even think how you felt like and I’m sorry if i have been too invested in my relationship with Quaxo”he breathed out as he had finally realized his mistake. Bombalurina nodded and blushed nervously looking away “I shouldn’t have snapped like that, I should have talked to you and know that I am happy for you, it just seems strange you know what I mean? You were never the caring type of boyfriend, i thought that this is just who you were and that you just weren’t made to be with me since i do like attention-”she said with a chuckle and Tugger chuckled as well with a smirk on his face.  
“You and me both-”

She playfully nudged his side as he had interrupted her to make a stupid comment before continuing “And Quaxo comes, someone so different from you, a stranger and suddenly he means the world to him. That’s what i want, or at least wanted from you when were dating, but generally a wholesome, actual relationship doesn’t sound bad-”she said and Tugger swayed his arm around her shoulder bringing her closer. “Hey Bombs, it’ll come one day, don’t think too much about it and it’ll be worth the wait-!”he said playfully with a smile on his face as Bombalurina nodded with a sigh as she relaxed against him, 

The room felt silent for a few minutes, or even hours, they weren’t sure, but it was dark outside, “Hey let’s go for a drink!”suggested Tugger and it didn’t take long for the two of them to walk out of the room giggling and muttering things like they used to do some days ago, Demeter and Munkustrap soon noticed them, they were cuddling on the couch and Alonzo next to them was solving a Chinese crossword. As soon as Alonzo felt Bombalurina and Tugger looking at him in confusion he smiled “I’m not good with crosswords anyway, in Chinese it’s like drawing!”he said with a goofy smile on his face “Glad to see you two made up!”he added and the couple next to him chuckled and nodded “It’s much better when you’re getting along-”commented Demeter as her sister and Tugger approached the door “We have our first concert tomorrow afternoon, so don’t stay up late and don’t drink!”said Munkustrap and Tugger playfully grinned at him “Yes Starps don’t be such a virgin, sheez!”said Tugger as him and his friend left.

After Quaxo had taken his keys he walked out of the room he shared with Tugger he walked out and went to find the twins, he was pleased when he found them both in their room as he expected and he spent part of their evening there. The two showed him how to pick a simple lock, specifically the bathroom lock of their rooms but then they moved to Quaxo’s room.

“N’ THAT’S ‘OW YA MAKE A CROP TOP VEST!”exclaimed Mungojerrie proudly as he was done sewing the woolen vest he had cut. “You can still keep it i’d feel exposed wearing that-”mumbled Quaxo with a chuckle, he had just ruined his alpaca-wool expensive sweater in order to learn how to make a crop top. “Grey isn’t really our color-”replied Teazer with a shrug and Jerrie nodded “It’s old!”  
“n’ plain!”  
“n’ dull!”

“Ya can ‘ave it for funerals though!”replied Teazer cheerfully with a smirk “Oh right sounds good enough-!”

Quaxo looked at them nervously “Excuse me but are your accents natural?It just seems strange, you lived in London then spent 6 years in Scotland then moved back to London yet you have a cockney accent-”mumbled Quaxo in confusion, he had been meaning to ask that for a long time. Jerrie shrugged “I don’t really know what my voice sounds like without an accent, do ya know Teazer?”he asked looking at his sister who was laying on top of the small desk her legs and head hanging lazily from each edge of the table.  
“Nah not really-”she replied and Quazo gave her a puzzled look.

“In Scotland, we spoke Scottish but never got a scottish accent when speaking English, we must ‘ave ‘ad a British accent as kids but i don’t remember”exclaimed Teazer with a smirk and her brother nodded “Let’s ask Ma’ n’ Pa’ once we’re back in London!”he said smiling happily at the thought of his parents, the twins loved them more than anyone else, they loved their parents as much as they loved each other, something that wasn’t really common.

The magician chuckled before shrugging, these were his friends and he had learned to not really question their anticis, they were Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer two of the most mysterious and interesting people he had ever met.  
When it was midnight the two left Quaxo’s room and went to their own since for once they planned on respecting Munkustrap’s wishes for whenever they had a concert, his date got ruined they might as well try not ruin their gig. So Quaxo was left alone waiting for Tugger, he didn’t sleep, instead he took his book and started reading, only having the small lamp-light on.

He couldn’t help but jump nervously as he heard the door slam open and was greeted with Tugger and Bombalurina shuffling their giggles as they closed the door behind him, “What have you two been doing?”hissed Quaxo with a groan as he feared that these two idiots would disturb the rest of the hotel residents. “Shhh!”sushed him Bombalurina as she placed her head against the door trying to listen and Tugger looked at her before giving Quaxo a playful grin and a wink.

10 minutes later she sighed in relief and looked at Quaxo “Hey shorty!Sorry for being a bitch to you, it was all Tugger’s fault!”she said grinning and Tugger ruffled her hair “Don’t ruin my image in front of Quaxo-”he whispered, or at least tried to whisper, he was talking rather loudly. Stumbling Tugger made his way over to the bed and placed his face close to Quaxo “Did you miss me love you~?”he purred and Quaxo huffed and shoved him away “Your breath stinks?Have you been drinking!?You two have a fucking concert tomorrow!”he yelled in frustration being louder than Tugger and Bomba had previously been.  
“We’re not drunk!”protested Bombalurina a quiet giggle escaping her as Tugger gave her a thumbs up.

“I didn’t ask if you were drunk-”muttered Quaxo in annoyance before taking the blanket of the bed “Go on sleep, you can’t afford to be tired tomorrow!”

Tugger pouted as he jumped on the bed before rolling over to his side of the bed and patting the seat next to him being unclear whether it was for Quaxo or Bomba to sleep there. “No no i’ll sleep in the bathtub -”replied Quaxo defensively and Bomba smirked before rolling on Quaxo’s side of the bed leaving a small space in between for the short magician “Tugger your boyfriend is mad he’s gonna spank you~”she purred teasingly making Tugger laugh loudly and Quaxo blush as he was pulled by Tugger to lay against his chest.

Huffing Quaxo tried to squirm away from Tugger’s tight hug but he was unable to “We’re not drunk, we’re semi-drunk Quaxo!”explained Bombalurina and Tugger nodded “Oh yes my little butterfly~ Fear not I’m not drunk!”he said with a giggle and Quaxo sighed as he smiled softly before covering the three of them up with the blanket.  
The red-haired woman snuggled closer next to Tugger and sortly fell asleep on Tugger’s side, it didn’t take long for Tugger to start snoring as well but he was still holding Quaxo on top of him in a tight loving hug. The magician smiled at the two before making sure they were all properly covered by the blanket before falling asleep against Tugger’s chest. This seemed right to him, he never imagined that he’d enjoy having any woman sleep beside him other than his sister but he was glad that Tugger was happy and he didn’t mind having Bombalurina around more if it meant that would avoid such a mess.

Surprisingly enough with Quaxo on top of him Tugger didn’t hog the blankets and other than his usual snoring and drooling he didn’t do any other of his sleep weird habits, such as moving around, kicking, falling off the bed and a rare occasion, talk in his sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //This chapter was shoretr i know, i just want to focus on Tugger and Bomba for this chapter and not have it get mixed up with the rest. The ending was weird but they won't have a polyamoric relationship, i kind of just picture it like how James and Lily Potter were dating and then there was Serious Black who wasn't third-wheeling but was really close to the couple.  
> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING THIS FAR AND FOR SUPPORTING MY FANFIC!IT really means a lot to me!
> 
> Kudos, comments, generally feedback and thoughts are more than welcomed and appreciated, but if you can't do these it's fine as long as you enjoy my story!


	10. Go tonight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> THIS IS THE FIRST CONCERT!OH NO but something happens at the end?What could it be~~?
> 
> I clearly can't describe concerts so you'll have to s u ff e r
> 
> but seriously read the chapter it's good!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //THANKS for reading this far!

Tugger woke up slowly and looked around him, luckily he didn’t have a headache and had avoided a hangover, he did feel a little dizzy but other than that he was fine, he smiled softly as he noticed Quaxo peacefully sleeping on top of him, it was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. Seeing him so relaxed on his chest made Tugger fall in love with him all over once again, the small beautiful figure of the shorter male trusting him and loving him enough in order to be able to fall asleep on him.   
This meant a lot to Tugger and now with Bomba sleeping next to him and everything having been sorted out, he could enjoy Quaxo with nothing holding him back. Instead of sleeping he gently hugged Quaxo and brought his face closer to his own, he was about to lay a soft gently kiss on Quaxo’s forehead wanting to see how his body would react, but instead Quaxo placed his hand over Tugger’s mouth and lazily opened his mouth “Don’t you dare ruin my sleep-”he hissed quietly a smirk on his face before he closed his eyes again and in less than 5 minutes he was sleeping again.

How badly Tugger wanted to poke him and annoy him right now, he smirked at the thought, but he loved him too much to do that, let him rest he could always get his ‘revenge’ for Quaxo’s ‘rude’ behavior later, he had all day, all week, maybe the whole month or year, in all honesty though he was praying for at least a lifetime with Quaxo. 

Teasing, annoying, supporting each other, all those things their relationship had and were so new to Tugger, sure he and Bombalurina did those things as well but in a different manner, most importantly though Tugger could do ‘nothing’ only with his short boyfriend, no one else. Around everyone else Tugger felt the desperate need to break the silence or do something, but with Quaxo, he wanted to sit still and quiet for long hours with the other male, not even looking at each other, just holding each other or sitting side by side while doing nothing, this was their thing.

After some hours he felt Bombalurina shift next to him and when she accidently bumped into Tugger’s side as she rolled she woke up. Careful not to wake Quaxo up she poked Tugger’s shoulder “Thanks for letting sleep here-”she whispered and Tugger gave her a short nod since he didn’t want to wake Quaxo up ‘Anytime’ he mouthed carefully and she smiled before getting off the bed and stretching. She got up and after she made sure she had woken up carefully she opened the door and left.  
Which left Tugger and Quaxo alone, how bored Tugger was, he loved watching Quaxo but he couldn’t move an inch in fear that he'd wake him up. Heaving a long sigh he entertained himself with his thoughts, Quaxo could use some sleep and Tugger didn’t plan on taking it away from him, it wasn’t that bad any way.

//To anyone saying Tugger’s reaction is unrealistic, I've been doing that in sleepovers ever since I was 6, I lay still and wait for the other to wake up since me and my friends usually share a bed if that’s the case. It’s hell, but it can still be done- Once I woke up at 7 fell asleep again for some minutes and waited until my friend woke up at 11 am.// 

Several hours after Tugger had woken up he felt Quaxo’s gaze on him, quickly he turned to face Quaxo’s sleepy face as the shorter magician yawned “What time is it?”he asked in a sleepy tone and Tugger turned to his nightstand to look at the clock. “Around 11~”he exclaimed lovingly as he held Quaxo a little closer who had started squirming and huffing “Why didn’t you wake me up earlier-”whined Quaxo with a huff earning a soft chuckle from the other “Didn’t you tell me not to do that-?”he asked in confusion and the other looked away before heaving a sigh “Well, i didn’t want to sleep on top of you and force you to waste your day, you must have been so bore.”exclaimed Quaxo who was able to roll out of Tugger’s grasp and lay next to him. “It’s fine, you can’t bore a terrible bore alright-?”joked Tugger before playfully ruffling Quaxo’s hair, who were already messy enough, which only made Quaxo hiss and glare at him.

But he couldn’t keep the glare for long, after a few seconds of looking at Tugger’s face he smiled softly and let out a loving chuckle before snuggling closer and placed his arm over Tugger.

“No no angel, enough napping for today-”said Tugger playfully before getting up, needless to say that Quaxo chuckled softly and stood up with a sleepy smile on his face “Fair enough!God i haven’t slept that much in a while-”he muttered, before making his way to the bathroom to take his usual morning shower and brush his teeth.   
“I’m assuming everything went smoothly with Bombalurina, you two made up right?”he asked and Tugger nodded despite knowing that Quaxo was in another room and wouldn’t see him “Yeah!BUT I SWEAR!I’M NOT cheating on you, I promise!”he said worriedly earning a groan from the other “Suggesting that i’m jealous and possessive over you is getting offensive and tiring-”said Quaxo loudly enough for Tugger to hear from the other side of the door, but before Tugger could reply he heard water running so he figured that Quaxo was showering.

Humming he started examining his clothes to choose an outfit for what he was going to wear in his concert tomorrow, Munkustrap had said something about playing at a pub-like place, of course it wasn’t the term Munkustrap had used but Tugger wasn’t paying that much attention. If he asked he’d have to hear a scolding, so he just shut up and tried to pick a fitting outfit.

“Are you feeling alright you're staring into the wall”asked Quaxo, his towel tightly wrapped around him as he shivered and made his way to his luggage, he had forgotten to take his clothes into the bathroom and change in there. “I’m trying to picture a mirror so that I can see myself and imagine my outfits on me-”explained Tugger, still staring into the wall, Quaxo chuckled and eye rolled. “Ohhh finally showing me some skin!You’re fire Quaxo~”Purred Tugger as he finally noticed that he could in fact for the first time see Quaxo’s skinny but beautiful legs.

Heat rushed up Quaxo’s face as he heated feeling exposed like this, he disliked his legs, they were so thin, sure he danced and it showed but skinny legs were part of his body structure he had grown over that insecurity and ignored it but having Tugger watch him brought up his feelings for his legs.. “Look away!”he whined as he wrapped his towel even tighter around him as if trying to hide his legs. “Come on I love you, why can’t I at least enjoy watching you walk out of the shower, it's not like i’m seeing your di-” “Don’t say it!”cut in Quaxo quickly as he looked at him earning a soft chuckle out of Tugger. 

“Go back into your shower you’re shivering, i’ll bring you clothes inside and i won’t peek i promise-”said Tugger with a soft smile and when he saw Quaxo’s surprised but grateful expression as he quickly went back into the bathroom he felt as if he was the luckiest guy on earth. The many expressions Quaxo took was something extremely interesting to Tugger, the way his face reflected his emotions, he was sure every human could do that, but surely not as beautiful as Quaxo, no one else’s facial expressions were enough to catch Tugger’s attention, at least not all of them.  
Sure Munkustrap had this ‘I’m mad, but also disappointed, but i still love you, but you’re killing me’ look that Tugger loved, he also liked how Jemima’s face lit up when she was wearing his leather jacket, how Demeter was about to puke whenever she took the garbage out, how Bombalurina blushed but smirked widely whenever she saw a cute guy. But other than some basic things he didn’t know them, on the contrary he would write a book about Quaxo, he would, but he can’t since words weren’t enough to describe the love and happiness Quaxo brought him.

He entered the shower holding a change of clothes for Quaxo and walked back out. “What the fuck did you gave me?”hissed Quaxo from the other side of the door. “Well i have a concert today, my first concert with you as my audience and i want you to fit it and i’d love to see you in my clothes cause you’d look adorable so i brought some of my clothes!”replied Tugger cheerfully as he pictured how beautiful Quaxo would look if for once he stopped dressing like some grandpa from the 20s. The fact that Quaxo had bought a couple of jackets and more fun shirts didn’t change his style that much.

The vests were still almost on every outfit Quaxo wore and ruined the more modern clothes he had gotten, as well as the bowties and ties he had. 

“The underwear is yours don’t worry!Mine would be too large anyway i need a lot of space for m-”  
“DON’T finish that sentence!”hissed Quaxo as he threatenly knocked on the door earning a chuckle out of Tugger “I love you so much~”cooed the taller musician and he heard the other chuckle quietly before letting out a loud groan obviously for Tugger to hear.

When Quaxo came out of the bathroom he was wearing a pair of dark, ripped jeans that were a little too long, they were supposed to be skinny but they were pretty loose on Quaxo, on top of that was a black also a little too loose T-shirt but it didn’t look as weird as the pants, to match the outfit Tugger had given him his leather motorcycle jacket and last but not least a simple black choker was around Quaxo’s neck.

“God you look hot-”mumbled Tugger his face heating up a little, but his eyes landed on the pants “Besides the jeans obviously, i’ll ask Jerrie to lend you a pair-”he added, but Quaxo was indeed far more sexually attractive to Tugger when he wore such clothes, especially the choker.  
“I feel like a dog and why are your jeans ripped?Please buy new ones, it's really tacky-”mumbled Quaxo as he looked around, it was his first time in jeans and it felt so strange. “Look, buying many clothes isn’t that easy you know, I tripped once and they got ripped, big deal!It looks rad and I have newer pairs! Maybe they’ll be in fashion one day~”purred Tugger, he didn’t like throwing clothes away so he’d wear something until it literally couldn’t be worn anymore.

Quaxo rolled his eyes and huffed “So people will buy to get old, ruined clothes-?”he asked raising an eyebrow and Tugger nodded “I bet by the time we’ve down old together ripped, old jeans will be in fashion and you’ll feel stupid!”said Tugger and Quaxo nodded “I accept the bet, but don’t start crying when no one will ever be wearing ripped jeans a-and dog collars!”added Quaxo quickly with a smug smirk. 

“Will you please wear these clothes today though-?”asked Tugger his eyes glowing as he looked at Quaxo trying his hardest to look ‘irresistible’, little did he know that he was already pretty irresistible in Quaxo’s eyes, not having much of an option Quaxo smiled softly and nodded “Pfft, fine, just for today i’ll ignore my fashion sense and dress tacky and poorly, not to mention the dog collar-”he muttered crossing his arms.

Being too excited to hide it Tugger rushed up to him giving him a tight hug and slightly lifting him off the ground which made the loose ripped Jeans Quaxo was wearing fall off. They stayed silent not knowing if they should blush and feel awkward or laugh, if they should keep hugging and Tugger would keep feeling Quaxo’s body or if they should pull away but Tugger would see him. They waited for someone to do something. “Well I don’t want to wear your pants but i can work the rest of the outfit-”joked Quaxo earning a laugh from the other who let him go.

Quaxo took off Tugger’s pants and neatly folded them before proceeding to grab a pair of his own, seeing that Tugger was feeling more awkward than he did he took advantage of it and tried to act all normal. Inside he was dying, not even his sister had seen him in his underwear. But if Tugger was shyer then Quaxo felt like the most confident man on earth, with a smug smirk on his face he put his own black pants on in front of Tugger who was left staring at him, he couldn’t believe it. He loved Quaxo and seeing him like this, he was so conflicted.  
Conflicted between feeling shy since a few minutes ago Quaxo didn’t want to even show Tugger his legs, between feeling turned on or amazed since he saw Quaxo as the most attractive person on earth, but he didn’t dare to think of anything sexual in fear that he’d stain the way he thought of Quaxo. He loved him but he didn’t want to imagine anything before their first time, he wanted to saviour everything for the actual deal and not spoil it.

For the first time in the presence of a half-naked partner sexual and romantic partner of his Tugger felt amazed and confused. He couldn’t be more in love, it was actual love, he cared about something beyond any physical or sexual level, he cared about Quaxo himself, his personality, everything there was to him.

“How ‘bout we go get breakfast?”suggested Quaxo and Tugger kissed his cheek “My love, you woke up pretty late, normal people eat lunch now~”he teased and Quaxo looked at the time “Oh hush it’s not that late!” replied Quaxo before taking his wallet and making his way to the door.

The two of them took a stroll around the hotel and grabbed something to eat from an open-air market nearby “I don’t get why everything in China is fried or steamed and has a fishy smell but also many green vegetables!”pointed out Tugger as he took a bite of his food “Tugger, in England we also have fried and steamed foods that contain fish and vegetables”pointed out Quaxo, a soft chuckle escaping his lips “Yeah but ours is not chinese!”protested Tugger as if he was making a point, Quaxo just eye rolled, he had by now learnt how Tugger was and there was no point in continuing this, on the contrary Tugger wanted to continue this to keep Quaxo’s attention and to mess with him in the playful manner. “You’re such a bore-”said Quaxo with a sigh and Tugger shrugged before giving him a quick peck on the cheek “You love me though, maybe that’s attractive~?”suggested Tugger and the other eye rolled.

“Clearly it’s not attractive, it can be entertaining though-”he replied trying to sound cool but he couldn’t help the smirk on his face. “If it’s entertaining then it’s definitely not boring!”replied Tugger and Quaxo huffed, he couldn’t deny how much he loved and enjoyed Tugger’s presence, he could but now he just couldn’t find a snarky smart way to reply. So with an eye roll Quaxo turned away and stuffed his mouth with food. “Adorable~”fawned Tugger as they kept walking around.   
“This is like our first date!”hummed Tugger happily and the other gave him a curious glance “Our first date was in a kitchen-”replied Quaxo and raised an eyebrow which earned a pout out of Tugger “We said that we wouldn’t count that date!!!”whined Tugger and his boyfriend chuckled and nodded “Right right our sorry!Then … then our first date was our last one on a rooftop-?”said Quaxo as he tried to recall what ‘first date’ Tugger was speaking off.

Tugger huffed and ruffled Quaxo’s hair “My Angel!Remember the date we had in that Russian town~?”he purred dramatically but Quaxo nudged him and glared at him “We weren’t even a couple!I-I thought i was sick for fuck’s sake-!”said Quaxo with a sigh, he wasn’t that fond of that memory he felt so happy yet guilty about doing those things with Tugger. He had let go and given into his ‘illness’ but that doesn’t mean he had fully accepted it back then. Now he felt like he had just wasted the time he had with Tugger and disliked how bad he felt back then. It was probably some weeks ago, but he had grown a lot through the past few days.

Heaving a sigh Quaxo looked at up at Tugger for a few seconds before averting his gaze “I-I was really comfortable with what was going on back then-”he breathed out and Tugger fought the urge to wrap his arm around him, he wanted to embrace him, hug him, anything, but they were in a crowded street during daytime, it would be like asking for trouble. The tall musician smiled at him “You’ve always been perfect and now well i’ve gotten those messed up thoughts out of your head!Don’t worry about it!”he replied cheerfully and the other male chuckled and nodded.

After their little walk they went back to the hotel and read a book to each other, it was nice now that Tugger had the day off due to this afternoon’s concert.   
But as they were reading the door slammed open “Tugs i can’t find my eyeliner i’m borrowing yours!”announced Bombalurina before walking inside and looking through Tugger’s back. “Yeah imma need s’me too!”replied Teazer with a giggle before rushing inside as well of course with Jerrie following her “Hey ya lovebirds~ I see ya ‘re in yher bed were ya two doin’ somethin’ interestin’~?”purred Jerrie his hands casually placed in his pockets as he leaned against the doorframe.

Before Tugger could find a smart way to reply Quaxo smiled and spoke up “Oh yes!It’s a really interesting book, i never knew reading with someone can be so much fun!”he exclaimed happily and Jerrie muffled a chuckle. 

“Isn’t it a little too early to be getting ready-?”asked Tugger and the two red-haired girls shrugged “Are you the stylist of the band-?”asked Bombalurina and raised an eyebrow as she glanced at Tugger who chuckled and shook his head. “So Tugs, which eyeliner and which mascara will you use?”she asked him as she looked through Tugger’s little bag of cosmetics.

“There are more types than one?”asked Quaxo and everyone just stared at him before returning to their jobs “Well i mean you can use a gel, a pencil or a liquid eyeliner BUT i never use the pencil one it just d-doesn’t work out-”admitted Tugger with an awkward chuckle, he didn’t like discussing such things with Quaxo, he did like it but he didn’t want Quaxo to see him as less of a man. All the magician did was shrug and keep observing everyone as Bombalurina rushed between Teazer’s and Jerrie’s room and his own with Tugger bringing clothes around. The twins had returned to their own room by now and it was Bomba’s job to pick their outfits.

Some minutes later Tugger picked his eyeliner and went to the bathroom to put it along with some mascara to make his lashes look better, he noticed Quaxo looking at him and he blushed “Angel c-can you wear some too?”he mumbled knowing that he’d feel a lot more comfortable if Quaxo wore at least some eyeliner to his concert “I’m already wearing a choker, a t-shirt and your jacket!”protested the short magician but as he saw Tugger looking at him with pleading eyes he sighed “Fine!”he replied as he got off the bed and followed Tugger into the bathroom.   
He sat on top of the toilet seat “Alright now close your eyes!”instructed the blond musician and the other complied closing his eyes, as soon as he felt the brush touch him he froze even more in fear that he’ll ruin it “Oh fuck, i can’t do it on someone else sorry Quaxo!”said Tugger with a nervous chuckle. The other shot up and looked in the mirror only to find the worst possible eyeliner ever done so far, the line was wavy as if Tugger’s hand was trembling and the end of it was smudged. 

“I think you don’t have the face for it-”mumbled Tugger trying to cover up his mistake “You’re too handsome on your own you don’t need any makeup covering up your beautiful face~”he continued in a purr-like tone which earned a soft chuckle out of the other.  
But as luck would have it Bombalurina walked inside “Oh oh no no, eyeline would suit you let me fix it-”replied Bomba and entered the bathroom, with a dump towel she gently rubbed the eyeliner off Quaxo’s right eye before proceeding to do her own. “Tugger don’t ever put makeup on someone else-”she said with a smile and Tugger chuckled before he walked out off the bathroom.

Seconds later Quaxo was wearing eyeliner for the first time in his life and he kind of liked it. So the three of them walked outside, Bombalurina was wearing a simple black skirt along with a red shirt and a leather vest on top of it, pretty bold actually. Tugger was wearing a simple pair jeans and a brown blouse, Quaxo was wearing far more unique clothes than him but he didn’t care.   
“We will meet the rest of the guys there, they went ahead to ensure that the venue is ready!”explained Bombalurina with a smile and the two guys nodded “So, what kind of place is the venue?”asked Quaxo nervously and Tugger chuckled “Something like a pub!”he replied and Quaxo nodded quickly, he had no idea what a pub was like though. Upon realizing that Tugger patted his back and chuckled “You’ll like it’m sure of it!”he replied confidently and the shorter male shrugged.

When they arrived at the address Munkustrap had given them though they didn’t see a pub, no instead they saw a coffeehouse. Quaxo already felt out of place with the eyeliner and the leather jacket, and Tugger couldn’t help but chuckle. He had imagined a darker place with dim, light less tables, bigger stage, like the places they played music in back in London, but now this was surely new. “You forced me to dress up like a greaser-teddy boy-”hissed Quaxo who didn’t have much of a choice but to enter the coffeehouse drawing almost all the attention on him, Bombalurina smirked and nudged him “Aye Jerrie!Look at Quaxo goin’ all out!”yelled Teazer she was nudging her brother a devilish smirk on both of their faces. Munkustrap was confused but not wanting to waste any time he motioned for Bombalurina and Tugger to come there so they could meet up.

Not having much of an option Quaxo heaved a sigh and took a seat as close to the small stage as he could.

A few minutes later everyone expect Demeter and Munkustrap was on stage, Tugger and Bombalurina in front of the one microphone, Tugger would also be holding his guitar if Bombalurina hadn’t broken it, anyway Alonzo was on the right side of the floor, Jerrie and the keyboard on the right and at the back was Teazer who was trembling from the excitment, she loved her position as the drummer, not only could she whisper stupid things to her brother while she herself was hiding behind the two most attention-whores in the world -Bomba and Tugger- but she was also by far the loudest and enjoyed that.

Soon the music started.

Tugger was looking at the crowd as usual, but now he was expecting to spot out Quaxo, their eyes would meet have a romantic moment or something but it was hard not to look at Quaxo, he was the only non-asian member of the crowd, the only one that wore black clothes and intense eyeliner, the crowd was even glancing at Quaxo from time to time. Instead of the romantic moment Tugger was just smirking as Quaxo glared daggers at him, it wasn’t exactly Tugger’s fault, the magician didn’t mind it that much, he was just pissed at how much Tugger seemed to be enjoying this.

The music was nice nonetheless so after the first few songs Quaxo completely ignored Tugger, never looking at him not even for a mere second and focusing his eyes on everyone and anything else expect Tugger. It was nice to see how much Tugger got annoyed by that, he’d dance to where Quaxo was looking at or stretch a note too much while he sang but everything was effortless.

They were basically messing with each other from a distance, it wasn’t the romantic moment Tugger thought but it was by far the most interested concert or at least one of the most interesting concerts and performances he had even given, all thanks to his little magician.  
Eventually they were done, Quaxo stood up and clapped loudly finally looking at Tugger, how they wanted to hug each other, Quaxo wanted to kiss him congratulate him since he had been amazing, his voice, dancing everything was really good, it was the first time Quaxo saw any band perform but he was certain they had done an amazing job. Sadly they were forced to sit many inches apart. This is how the rest of the night went, it was obviously fun, but it was like torture to the couple.

Later on they all went out to eat and celebrate at a nearby restaurant, but the twins were sitting in between Tugger and Quaxo, Munkustrap’s idea to avoid getting too ‘casual’ in public “We don’t want trouble with the law-”he said and both Tugger and Quaxo understood that all too well.

After what seemed like hours though they finally reached their hotel room.  
“Night ya lovebirds!”said Jerrie and his sister let out a loud giggle as they walked inside their own room as well “Goodnight!”said Quaxo with a smile and Tugger forced his lips close before he spoke and simply nodded.  
Upon entering Tugger ran to the bathroom slamming the door behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //Sooo I'm not gonna tell you what happened, but please don't think that i'm 'making up' problems, you'll see what it is in the next chapter but please don't think i'm adding drama for no reason, this won't be too dramatic or angsty.
> 
> ALSO thanks for reading this far!I hope i haven't let you down so far, i fear that i'm not going with the canon relationship 'Terrible bore/Marvelous, magical, flawless Mr Mistoffelees' but i do feel like they'd kind of tease each other and that Tugger would do such things to get his attention and to make Quaxo look even more 'adorable' in his eyes.
> 
> Anyway, comments, feedback, kudos, any of these motivates me and seriously makes my day, but if you can't do these, it's cool, just keep reading my story!That's really cool as well thank you!

**Author's Note:**

> //Thanks for reading this far! I hope you enjoyed it, kudos, bookmarks and comments are appreciated and welcomed!
> 
> ✨Have some sparkles✨


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